This is my my favorite red zinfandel. For those who are concerned; red zinfandel has nothing, I repeat, NOTHING to do with white zinfandel. Do you understand? NOTHING!.....Well, nothing other than the fact that it is the exact same grape. Other than that, it's a completely different and unbelievably flavorful grown up wine.
R. Merlo is from Trinity County CA, which is so far north that it is practically Oregon. This is a very odd place for a California winery, but apparently the warm days and cold nights are similar enough to Napa & Sonoma that the grapes are superb.
There are two big flavor components to a good red zin--jam (mostly strawberry jam) balanced out by black pepper spice. And R. Merlo? Jam? Times ten. Black pepper? Also times ten. It's heavy with a creamy mouth feel and is all-around wonderful. Open it and let it breath for a couple of hours before drinking. $19.99.
Oh, it's unfiltered, so you'll find red flakes at the bottom of the bottle. That's normal.
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