2005 Trentadue Old Patch Red

2005 Trentadue Old Patch Red -$13 Sonoma, CA
Greetings from Cali. This is the first wine I've bought since moving here so it had to be from Cali. Sonoma is close enough, I would've preferred starting with a Napa wine but there isn't any good Napa wine for $13 but Sonoma is coming through in the clutch. This wine is an interesting blend from Trentadue, evidently it is very popular, this is the first time I've had it, but I agree it is very good. The blend is based on zinfandel with some petite sirah, carignane, and a bit of syrah. The blend changes slightly every vintage but the basic idea is mostly zinfandel, then petite sirah and carignane. They call this a bistro wine, I'm not exactly sure what that means so I guess I like bistro wine or at least this one. This wine is distinctly Californian, you won't find a blend like this from anywhere but Cali. It is a rich, smooth, fairly big wine. It starts off juicy, then peppery, with a dry finish that lasts. And it's got a screwtop, which is a very good thing. People out here in California are crazy, they like to pay a lot of money for California wine. The pride in the local wine is understandable because it is generally very good but the prices are ridiculous, it's hard to find a wine this good for this price. I highly recommend this wine. If you can get the '05 good, but they make this every year and it seems like the vintages are pretty consistent so if you find a different vintage I would still try it.