Aromas of briary black raspberry, lavender and graham cracker crust give way to supple velvety tannins on the palate. Cortina Zinfandel opens with a vibrant red fruit characters and a subtle hint of cocoa powder that carries through to a lengthy, elegance in the midpalate and finishes with richness and a touch of spice. Our Dry Creek Zinfandel is extremely versatile and pairs excellently with lamb, creamy pastas, and veggie dishes.
Our Dry Creek Zinfandel is extremely versatile and pairs excellently with lamb, creamy pastas, and veggie dishes.
Cortina Zinfandel represents our peak expression of Zinfandel from Dry Creek Valley. Named for the gravelly loam soils where this variety thrives, the heart of Cortina comes from Chen’s Vineyard, planted by the Seghesio Family in 1972. Shrouded by morning fog and cooled by afternoon breezes, the grapes benefit from longer hang time, resulting in an elegant Zinfandel with lifted aromatics, bright layered fruit and refined structure.
All grapes were hand-picked and sorted at the winery, gently destemmed, and transferred to small open-top fermentors without being pumped. The fermentations were macerated by pneumatic punch downs throughout the fermentation on skins which lasted from 7 to 10 days. Free run juice was drained and settled briefly before being transferred to barrels to complete malolactic fermentation. The wines were aged for 15 months in 14% new French Oak and 86% neutral French and American.