It Starts With A Grape

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Primitivo, aka Zinfandel from Southern Italy, is one of my favorite wines. This one, thankfully, is no exception. My first good whiff was filled with delicious aromas of a late autumn bonfire, complete with fallen leaves. (Can you tell I’m sick of winter?) Just beyond the lovely smokey aromas lies fresh black cherry with a touch of raspberry jam, white pepper, and clove cigarettes. The black cherry has no problem presenting itself on the palate, its the first thing that hits your taste buds. A close second is all of that smoke showcased on the nose. Its tannins are very present, yet smooth and silky. There’s a touch of dried blueberries and tart cranberry that lends a slightly sour note. For how juicy it is upfront, its finish is bone dry. I paired this wine with baked ravioli in a puree of roasted red/yellow peppers, roma tomatoes, red onion and asparagus, topped with fresh mozzarella slices and basil. It stood up very well to the peppers, and asparagus. The fresh mozzarella was a perfect match as far as body goes. All in all, it was a good match. If you would like to add a little meat, I would definitely recommend prosciutto.

This entry was posted on Friday, July 15th, 2011 at 6:22 am and is filed under Wine Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.