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Oenophilic tendencies

Written by Jeannine Sano

Friday, 17 March 2006

Filling two enormous warehouses at the Herbst Pavilion in Fort Mason, over 280 wineries participated in the 15th Annual Zinfandel Festival of the Zinfandel Advocates and Producers ("ZAP"), offering tastes of their current and soon-to-be-released zinfandels and zinfandel blends on Saturday, January 28, 2006. Not even the dreary, rainy weather could keep the crowds from storming the warehouses. Zins are big and getting bigger all the time, not just in production, sales, and prominence, but in terms of big, jammy fruit and high alcohol. 14.0 percent was the lowest I saw, and most were in the 14.9-15.9 percent range, with some even hitting the 16 percent level. All of the Cline Zinfandels had varying degrees of its characteristic caramel-coffee notes. Quivira's 2003 Anderson Ranch Zinfandel was peppery in the older style of zinfandel that I personally favor. Unti, a small family winery in Healdsburg, offered zinfandels with an Italian twist. Meeker's 2002 Idle Home Zinfandel had a hint of peach that surprisingly complements the flavors of this intense grape. Celebrity chef Michael Chiarello, promoting wines from the Chiarello Family Vineyard, was drawing a crowd as he smiled for fans and poured tastes from 2003 and 2004 zinfandels. After two hours of tasting, despite diligent (although not very proficient) spitting and dumping and intermittent snacking on the fresh bread, cheese and fruit available in abundance in the center of each of warehouse, I was zinned out. Mr. Parker may be the only human being on the planet who can actually taste all of these wines, and surely no mortal can keep track of more than a dozen. Rest your taste buds. Next year's festival is scheduled to take place January 24-27, 2007. Coming up this month, I am particularly excited about the French Artisan Winemakers Event at K&L Wine Merchants in San Francisco, www.klwines.com, showcasing small organic/biodynamic wines from the Loire Valley, Languedoc, Rhone Valley, Jura and Burgundy. Biodynamic wines are quite in vogue these days, but fashionable or not, I would be loathe to miss Chef Charles Phan from the Slanted Door serving hors d'oeuvres and tasting freshly-shucked oysters from Hog Island Oyster Company, along with sample cheeses from The Cheese Shop of Healdsburg – just in case the wines alone are not enough of a draw. This event will take place on March 25, 2006, 1-4 p.m., at K&L Wine Merchants, 638 4th Street, (877) 559-4637. Tickets are $50, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Community Foundation of the Napa Valley to benefit victims of the recent Napa flooding, but only 200 tickets are available. And last but not least, upcoming wine events this month in the Northside: Tastings at Ottimista Enoteca-Caf&eacute, 1838 Union Street, (415) 674-8400, www.ottimista.sf.com: • Saturday, March 11, 3-4:15 p.m.: Wines of Alto Adige ($35/person) • Tuesday, March 14, 6-7:15 p.m.: Wine Pairing: Amarone and Cheese ($45/person) Nectar Wine Lounge, 3330 Steiner Street, (415) 345-1377, www.nectarwinelounge.com: • Tuesday, March 7, 6-9 p.m.: Sparkling Wines PlumpJack Wines, 3201 Fillmore Street, (415) 346-9870, www.plumpjack.com: • Wednesday, March 8, 6:30-8 p.m.: Central Coast Pinot Noirs ($65/person)

Last Updated ( Thursday, 16 November 2006 )