Welcome to the Wine Spies Intrigue Awards for 2016! Each year we recognize our most popular and most sought-after wines from the previous year - while giving our Operatives one final chance to secure some of the winning wines for themselves.

We may never show this wine again, so grab yours while you still can.

You can’t even find today’s wine at Cougar’s Leap Winery. They’ve sold out to the public, but they have offered me a chance to raid their secret wine vault for another crack at today’s 2016 Wine Spies Intrigue Award winner for Best Buy Zinfandel, the incredibly popular 2010 Black Rock Zinfandel.

Today’s wine is a fantastic wine for summertime grilling or finer dining. It is flexible, friendly, approachable and downright delicious. Stash a few bottles away for your holiday entertaining, too!

Nils Venge, who earned a perfect 100 point score from Robert Parker for Nils’ Groth Cabernet Sauvignon, made today’s wine with the same enthusiasm that he brings to all of his winemaking projects.

This Red Hills Zin is bursting with flavor, making it a great companion to a zesty meal. Enjoy with BBQ, pasta with red sauce or a garlic rubbed steak.

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Here’s what the wine press has to say:

90 points - Gregory Del Paz - “Fresh oak greets the nose along with sour blue and black fruits that have a meaty edge to them. This is cool and firm on the palate with flavors of thoroughly ripe dark berry—almost curranty fruit—with blueberry accents and a nutty top note. The oak turns a touch smoky on the moderately long finish, which has blueberry and tart cranberry notes.”