Region: Paso Robles, CA
This wine has everything I love in a zinfandel, especially that dense layer of tobacco beneath the rest of its flavors. There are thick, juicy berries along with some dried currant texture. Honestly, the Novella Zinfandel seems really well done for a zinfandel at this price range, but that might be my new aerator talking. There's a mild sweetness to it that enhances all the flavors, and a lovely cinnamon aftertaste washes it all down.
Aroma: Almost nothing. My nose is unimpressed.
Taste: Well, it tastes like grape juice that's been fermented. I'm not picking up any subtlety. If I wanted to get snooty, I would say that I taste a white currant undertone, but the truth is that I'm not. It tastes like smooth red grape juice - without much concord influence. The label says I should be tasting fennel and spice, but if there's fennel hints in the wine, I'm not getting it, and whatever spice is there is very soft spice.
Texture: Smooth in the mouth at first, with a more stimulating second wave provoking the tongue to rise into choppy waves like a lake in a sudden summer squall.
How to drink it: I'm finding the most satisfaction in curling the tongue a bit, because it's not provoking any sensation on the sides of my tongue at all. It's along the middle of the roof of my mouth and in the curled canyon of my tongue that this wine feels most at home.
It tasted dusty with slight hints of cherry and spice. It was drinkable, but not my favorite Novella.
I love red zins. I especially love red zins that taste much more expensive than they are. This wine is cheap enough to crack open at home for that one or two glass evening in front of your fave TV show (with or without food). It also tastes expensive enough to take to a party without breaking the bank - and bonus, you won't be embarrassed. . . This Paso Robles wine is medium bodied, very jammy, with lots of cooked cherry and maybe a bit of licorice. My untrained palate thinks it detects a teensy bit of vanilla on the finish, which was confirmed when I ran a few searches.
Reviewed 5.24.10.
