Wine Tasting #3 Winking Owl White Zinfandel

 Winking Owl California White Zinfandel 2015

California, United States

Price: $3.49

"I was pleasantly surprised by how refreshing and easy to drink this wine is. It has a very nice fruity and tangy flavour and would be excellent as a brunch drink in lieu of a mimosa. It is super smooth and tastes like a non-alcoholic Washington apple. I love the hints of pineapple, strawberries, and how well-balanced/not overly sweet it is. This wine is a great value for the price." 

-  Hannah Morelli in Masterchefs on nichmarket.co.za

"Can NOT beat the price. Perfect for those just starting to get into wine. Not a dessert wine. Just slight bit of tart to it. Nice pair with cheese"

- Dylan Thomas on Vivino.com

Wine folly: smells for Zinfandel: blackberry, strawberry, peach preserves, cinnamon, sweet tobacco,smoky sweet

Wine folly: Taste for Zinfandel : raspberry jam, peach preserves, blackberry bramble, star anise,

Color: Deep Salmon

Low alcohol content at 8.5%

My Review:

Aroma: fruity, blueberry, raspberry

Taste: bitter after taste like a blackberry, kind of tastes like the stomach acid you'd taste when you have acid reflux.

I am not a huge fan of this wine at all. The smell is inviting with light, fruity flavors. However, the flavor is very off putting and tastes like vomit at the back of my throat, which is not a great image for me to visualize while trying to drink this wine. I also tried this wine with two different cheeses, in the hopes that the pairing would make the wine better. I tried it with Brie and a sweet desert cheese, Blueberry Vanilla Goat Cheese that I got at Aldi.

With the Brie:

I found the bitterness dissipates with the flavor of the brie and it takes away some of the acidity that was causing the bad flavor. I definitely enjoyed this wine more with the brie pairing and found I would not mind it as much when it is paired correctly with the correct cheese/food. 

With blueberry vanilla goat cheese:

This cheese makes that bitterness flavor/bile flavor more pronounced, and it does not mesh well at all. It tastes like I'm tasting all the wrong flavors in all the wrong proportions. I would give it at 0/10 with this cheese pairing. This cheese is just too sweet for this wine and it does the opposite of what the brie does for it in the worst possible way.