Hot! The Chronicle Recommends

2009 Buehler Napa Valley Zinfandel ($19, 14.5% alcohol): Guided by longtime winemaker David Cronin, Buehler provides cornered a industry just for this style associated with affordable, gratifying Zin. With something like 20 percent innovative oak, it really is guided toward dusty raspberry as well as black start barking notes.

2009 Green & Red Chiles Mill Vineyard Napa Valley Zinfandel ($25, 14.7%): Jay Heminway provides the actual torch for old-school Napa Zin through the western area of Chiles Valley. With relatively minor brand-new fire wood from the 1,000-foot-elevation parcel of which overlooks the stays of the valley's european grist mill, this really is ended up more than enough that will have to have a different year throughout bottle. Cedar, cinnamon, forest ground in addition to racy raspberry and plum in a centred in addition to notably tannic style.

2009 Turley Heminway Vineyard Napa Valley Zinfandel ($30, 15.1%): A fantastic combo with Napa talent - the polished style of Larry Turley's label underneath Ehren Jordan's winemaking, with the first time applying crops from Jay Heminway (Green & Red). Where Turley's Napa wine usually are generally hearty, this particular is simple and perfumed, that has a interested fenugreek-like spice, just about including a curried strawberry tart. Great vibrancy, with extra figure from the burnt-sage accent.

2009 Tres Sabores Rutherford Zinfandel ($35, 14.2%): Julie Johnson's perseverance growing 8 miles of estate Zinfandel inside the woman's organically farmed percentage involving Cab-friendly Rutherford preserves paying off. Showing your sound dosage with oak. It's hearty, dark-fruited along with loamy, with cinnamon as well as iris features to brambly berrey along with black plum. A beautiful sweetness on the tannins.

2009 Benessere Holystone-Collins Old Vine Napa Valley Zinfandel ($32, 14.5%): This mature parcel from Benessere goes to 1923, as well as these it is really depicted in a fashionable way, having refined red berry tastes along with a questioning Muscat-y flower note, plus blueberry and sage accents.

2009 Hendry Blocks 7 & twenty two Napa Valley Zinfandel ($35, 15.2%): Hendry's parcels west with Napa, in the direction of Mount Veeder, will be between those attractions where Zin detects different character. These blocks, selected and planted around 1972 as well as 1995, deliver some sort of delicate wood-tinged nose filled with balsam, strawberry jam, pepper in addition to aniseed. Savory sufficient to get truly serious, with sufficient dark fruit and structure to help even now be an excellent expression connected with place.

2009 Rock Wall Stagecoach Vineyard Napa Valley Zinfandel ($40, 15.8%): Kent Rosenblum as well as little girl Shauna certainly recognize the type their partisans love. Here they've drawn on the rocky Stagecoach internet site for the no-holds-barred expression. Intense, lusty cinnamon timber notes, by using blackberry quickly pull including a nice licorice tone. Not subtle, however rewarding. As one taster placed it, "This will be the home wine that should allow you to be find something to help stupid." Hope not.

2010 Fontanella Family Napa Valley Zinfandel ($36, 14.9%): This newish Mount Veeder brand carries on it's roll having a fresh, brambly and fairly young brand-new Zin. Creamy blackberry fruit overlays dried herb as well as sandalwood, giving a stylish poise.

Panelists: Anya Balistreri, wines buyer, The Wine House; Jon Bonn , Chronicle wine editor; Johnny Slamon, wine beverage director, Alexander's Steakhouse, San Francisco.