And the WIA for BEST QPR of the Year goes out to… THE 97 POINTER MIRO BASTONI ZIN of course!

At over 40% off, all the way down to a mere $23 for this top single vineyard, this over-delivers in a BIG way. We frequently don’t brag about scores from outside of the mainstream wine press, yet the 97 points this earned from Sunset International is noteworthy and accurate enough to define this faultless, intense, no, make that explosively delectable beauty.

Miro Cellars is a low-key winery in Sonoma spearheaded by Miro Tcholakov. We’ve been working with him for over a decade and have been able to offer winner after winner to you, our fine Operatives. He arrived in Napa Valley first to work a harvest in 1990 which spurred a nine-year stint at Dry Creek Vineyard. Since 1999 he’s been the winemaker at Trentadue and does his own thing on the side. Miro is a passion project, if you will, for when he and his better half are not busy judging international wine competitions or designing labels. We’ve been lucky enough to stay on his good side, and they hook us up with wildly delicious deals when a few cases remain, as his wines sell out fast, year-in-year-out.

And souring from Bastoni shows what kind of “ins” Miro has in the industry. A hidden spot within the recently throned Fountaingrove District due east of Russian River Valley and south of Knights Valley, only the best of the best like Carol Shelton and Joseph Swan share fruit from this prized vineyard.

The wine itself is stunning. Warm berry pie, touches of black pepper and licorice, this is textbook California Zinfandel. The copious amount of sweet fig jam and all manners of blackberry, boysenberry, and cherry mixed with baking spices is simply heavenly. So much complexity! It’s all wrapped around a big, dense, delicious core. We told you we had something JUICY for you!

OG Operatives know the Miro style well. Truly impossible to resist. So why try? Just give in. You’ll be glad you did.

97 Points – Sunset International

“Balanced, nice, and smooth. Full mouth, succulent, nice vanilla bean, perfectly ripe fruit, cocoa.”