No California Wines, No Problem - Part 1 - Zinfandel

     First of all, I am not going down the rabbit hole of commenting on the current US trade war and the resulting removal of American wine, beer and liquor products at the LCBO. It's not under my control so we're just going to have to live with it for now. It's time to take a lemon and make some lemonade. California produces some great wines but they're not the only game in town and that's what we're going to explore.

    Italy, France, Spain, Chile, Australia, New Zealand and other countries make fantastic wines. So lets find other great wines that we can substitue for your favourite California wine.

    Zinfandel is a popular California red wine and it shares very similar DNA with the Primitivo grape from Italy. They're both relatively high alcohol full bodied red wines with jammy flavours of dark fruit and some spice. A big bold wine for backyard BBQs or Italian pasta dishes. 

Papale Primitivo Di Manduria - LCBO 261784

This Primitivo is well worth it's price. A delicious dark red wine that is full of flavours like plum and some chocolate with lots of spice at the end. I have a hard time keeping this wine in my cellar as it is so good. 

It pairs well with beef, tomato based pasta dishes or just as a good sipping wine. 

Orso Bruno - Old Vine Zinfandel - LCBO 31808

Orso Bruno is an old vine Zinfandel that lives up to the phrase "the older the vine, the sweeter the wine". It has a dark rich red opaque colour with aromas of dark fruit and spice. Flavours of plum and raspeberry with a moderate tannin level is a nice pairing for BBQ steak, ribs or burgers. 

This wine is a great value at under $11 a bottle

Next week will be more California wine substitutes. See you then.

Mark Cochrane

Email me at markuncorked@gmail.com

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