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Mission Codename: Fifty and Fabulous

Operative: Agent Red

Objective: Return to Sausal Winery and secure their 2006 Family Zinfandel for our Operatives around the world

Mission Status: Accomplished!

Current Winery: Sausal Winery

Wine Subject: 2006 Family Zinfandel, Alexander Valley

Winemaker: Dave Demostene

Backgrounder: Our Operatives loved the last Sausal wine that we featured, and they have asked us to return to the winery to procure an allotment of their lower-priced, Family Zinfandel. While perhaps not as robust or complex as the Reserve Old Vine Zin, today’s wine is an easy-drinker with plenty of charm. If you are looking for a budget Zinfandel that pairs easily, you might consider picking up a few bottles of today’s wine.

Zinfandel is related to the Italian Primitivo grape, tracing its origin to the Croatian grape Crljenak Kastelanski. Zinfandel is one of the most versatile varietals with the ability to make wines, both rich to fruity, dark to light, and dry to sweet. Alexander Valley Zinfandels, which are characterized by their big, extracted flavors, are gaining in popularity with our Operatives. Read Agent Red’s tasting notes and mission report below.

Wine Spies Tasting Profile:

Look – When looking at this wine, sitting still in the glass, it has a somewhat garnet hue to it. Move the wine, however, and ruby color leaps out at you. Perfectly clear through its core, and showing off pinkish edges, the wine shows thin tears that cling to the glass for a moment, before the streak their way downward.

Smell – Mixed black and red fruit present up front, with soft cherry and subdued blackberry. Dried fall leaves, soft leather, mixed spice and black pepper.

Feel – Light and easy in the mouth, then soft, fine-grained tannins take hold, adding a soft and spreading dryness.

Taste – Blackberry, juicy bright cherry and plum lead the way. These are joined by soft spice, soft black pepper and a hint of smokey oak.

Finish – Long and bright, with pronounced red cherry and a hint of black pepper.

Conclusion – This wine likes a fair amount of decanting to really get the most from it. After 30 minutes of decanting, the wine was much more flavorful and had a far more balanced overall appeal. After an hour, the wine was transformed, offering the drinker a deeper, more flavorful wine that delivered better flavors, more complexity and a richer nose. Be patient with the wine and you shall be rewarded. Our tasting panel paired the wine with chips and salsa. I can think of few pairings that are more challenging for a wine, but this 2006 Sausal Family Zinfandel, made from 50 year-old vines, held up beautifully.

Mission Report:

WINEMAKER INTEL BRIEFING DOSSIER

SUBJECT: Dave Demostene

DATE OF BIRTH: 12/1939

PLACE OF BIRTH: Healdsburg, CA

WINE EDUCATION: After graduating from Cal Poly and completing the wine oenology program at Davis, I worked for 17 years with my father who was a winemaker

CALIFORNIA WINE JOB BRIEF: Sausal Winery, Winemaker since 1973

WINEMAKING PHILOSOPHY: The less you do to the wine the better

SIGNATURE VARIETAL: Zinfandel

CAREER HIGHLIGHT: 1986 Sausal Family Zinfandel was featured as the 2nd “Great Buy” in 1989 Wine Spectator. At the time it retailed for $6.75 a bottle.

CAREER HIGHLIGHT: 2003 Sausal Century Vines Zinfandel was featured as the Zinfandel of the Year with 96 pts in the Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine

WINEMAKER QUOTE: It takes good grapes to make good wine

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WINEMAKER INTERVIEW

AGENT RED: Greetings, Dave. Thanks so much for taking some time to answer questions for our Operatives today.

DAVE: You’re welcome!

RED: Was there a specific experience in your life that inspired your love of wine?

DAVE: I grew up in the wine business, watching and helping my father make wine… this was way before it was popular. It was just our way of life then: Growing grapes and making wine.

RED: And where did you learn the most about winemaking?

DAVE: I learned by watching my father and in those days if someone made a good wine you’d ask them how they made it and they would tell you. It was a small industry then and everyone shared what they did or would be happy to help you out.

RED: What is your winemaking style or philosophy?

DAVE: I try to get away from the heavy fruit and high alcohol wines. I like a more balanced wine.

RED: What wine or winemaker has most influenced your winemaking style?

DAVE: My Dad

RED: How long have you been making wine?

DAVE: I’ve been making wine all my life. I started working in the winery when I was 14 years old, after school and on weekends. I did everything: Shoveling pumice, pumping over, and racking wine.

RED: Who do you make wine for?

DAVE: I make wine that I like and our customers seem to like that too.

RED: Tell me, what makes the Alexander Valley so special?

DAVE: The soil and micro climate make this a good area. We have well drained soil, warm days with cool nights and a breeze that blows through the valley. Perfect growing conditions.

RED: What is one piece of advice that you would give to someone that is considering a career as a winemaker?

DAVE: Get your basics at school, but then find a winery that makes wine you like to get your apprenticeship from. Work a harvest there to learn how its done.

RED: What is occupying your time at the winery these days?

DAVE: We’ve just finished up some bottling in the winery. In the vineyard, buds are breaking. As of this week all of our vines buds have pushed and the 2010 vintage has begun.

RED: Please tell me a little bit about the wine we are featuring today

DAVE: Sausal Family Zinfandel is a classic Alexander Valley Zinfandel, produced from estate grown grape vines averaging 50 years old. Following fermentation, the wine was aged twenty-one months in a combination of American and French oak barrels, adding complexity. The 2006 vintage is a medium bodied Zinfandel, bright with cherry and plum aromas, and a long mouthwatering finish.

RED: What is your favorite pairing with today’s wine?

DAVE: I like to pair this wine with a creamy pasta Alfred or stroganoff, but this wine also holds up nice to chili spice like southwestern dishes.

RED: Please share one thing about yourself that few people know

DAVE: I like to hunt. Mostly pig, deer and elk

RED: What is your favorite ‘everyday’ or table wine?

DAVE: You can’t go wrong with our Sausal Family Zinfandel

RED: How would you recommend that people approach your wines, or wine in general?

DAVE: Our wines are ready to drink when they are released and are made to be enjoyed with food.

RED: If you could choose any one wine to drink (regardless of price or availability), what would it be?

DAVE: Sausal Century Vines Zinfandel. This wine is made from vines that are over 130 years old. It’s soft and elegant. A perfect afternoon sipping wine.

RED: What is the one question that I should have asked you, and what is your answer to that question?

DAVE: Can Zinfandel age? It depends on the grapes and the vintage, but as a rule old vine Zinfandel can age. The older vines, maybe because their yield is so low, make wine that ages for a long time.

RED: Thank you so much for your time. We learned a lot about you – and about your wine. Keep up the great work, we are big fans!

DAVE: Thank you very much, and I hope you enjoy our wine.

Wine Spies Vineyard Check:

The location of the Sausal winery can be seen in this satellite photo.