Thursday, August 17, 2006

White Zinfandel Wine

Let's get back to wine. In previous article about wine we talked about wine values. Today we will be talking about White Zinfandel. White Zinfandel is a relative new discovery in the world of wine. I believe it's perfect wine for the summer. White Zinfandel is a very refreshing, smooth yet crisp, very easy to drink rose wine.

White Zinfandel is a favorite wine for many people because of its fruity nature and general appeal. It's very popular in California and Italy. White Zinfandel is also known as Zin or Primitivo in Europe (Italy). Research confirmed a relationship between White Zinfandel and Primitivo, causing speculation that White Zinfandel might have originated in Italy. dna research has shown that Crljenak Kastelanski (very old and almost forgotten grape from Croatia) and Zinfandel have identical genetic profile. Additional research discovered that another more popular grape Plavac mali (also from Croatia) is a descendant of Crljenak Kastelanski and therefore of wine, in America (California) known as Zinfandel.

You can find many types of Zinfandel. One popular style is White Zinfandel. It's a fruity flavored blush wine. White Zinfandel is usually slightly sweet and vary in pink hue. Many people think it's a mistake that wine is labeled as white because of its pinkish color. Anyhow, white is the correct term for the wine. The White Zinfandel is not actually a blush wine. The finalization process of making White Zinfandel is different than in a blush wine.

The Zinfandel grape is red and it produces a red wine. Why is the final product pink or white you might ask. The producers of White Zinfandel changed the wine making strategy. They adapt the process of creating the wine. As I stated already earlier people use Zinfandel grapes to produce a wide range of wine styles including White Zinfandel. The grape skins are holding the color. When the grape skins are left on the grape during the fermentation process you will get a red colored drink as a final result.

So why has a White Zinfandel pink hue? The answer is because the skins of the grape are left on only for a moment and then they are removed. The final product will have a pink hue because we removed the skins (they contain the red color) during the fermentation process. When we remove the grape skins we also remove the red color and only a small trace of the red color remains which gives the wine it's characteristic hue.

White Zinfandel is delicious with fish, with pasta, pork, creamy sauces and other let's call them lighter meals. It seems to have this acid that remind me of a lemon. You will be able to taste a lot of berries with this wine. Some fruit juices are added to White Zinfandels just before bottling. This is more or less just a marketing move in my opinion to create new flavored versions of White Zinfandel. But people seem to like it so why not? It became popular among the mainstream but wine connoisseurs are not thrilled with White Zinfandel. Majority of wines are superior quality and taste regarding to White Zinfandel. But these wines have please the connoisseurs and pretentious wine drinkers. Therefore White Zinfandel is a perfect bond wine that connects the wine enthusiasts and average wine drinkers.

White Zinfandel should be drank at around 54°F (12°C) which is warmer than fridge temperature which is around 39°F (4°C). Take it out of the fridge an let it worm up a bit before consuming it. That way you will be able to experience those gentle flavors and smells that we mentioned earlier. Important thing to know about White Zinfandel is that Zin is not an aging wine! It won't get better with years passing by so drink it as soon as possible.

White Zinfandel is not the only wine created through this unique process There are many tasteful wines created through the same unique process. As a matter of fact now you can find white Merlot on the market. White Zinfadel is favorite among mainstream wine drinkers because it goes great with a food on picnics and barbecues. Or if you wish you can just chill out with it after a hard day at work. So if you haven't tasted White Zinfandel yet I am sure you will taste it now. Relax, sit on a sofa or wherever you feel comfortable and enjoy your first sip of White Zinfandel.

Cheers!

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