Sunce Winery & Vineyard, Alicante Bouschet 2018, Sandy Lane Vineyards, San Francisco Bay, California

Tasting Note: An Alicante Bouschet with depth, mounds of black fruit and just a dash of vanilla baking spice.

Deep-intensity purple-to-ruby in color with some garnet around the edges, this wine has an aromatic, medium-plus-intensity nose of blackberry puree, black currant, fig, rhubarb and black plum.

On the palate the dry, medium-plus-bodied Alicante Bouschet has medium-plus-intensity, black-fruit flavors suggested on the nose supported by medium acidity and slightly-grippy, medium-plus tannin ultimately completing with a black-currant-infused medium-plus finish.

The wine has concentration that begins in the midpalate and lasts through to the end of the taste.

A red varietal I adore.

Bottle Note: Sunce is a family winery located in the Russian River Valley appellation of Sonoma County – specializing in small artisan lots of vineyard designated varietal wines and classic blends. Frano’s fifth time out with this varietal shows a deep, densely opaque color, exuding aromas of box of chocolates, while packing tannins and minerality, and black plums through the richly textured finish. Alicante is a teinturier (a grape with red flesh) one of a few belonging to the vitis vinifera family. Alicante is famous for its role during prohibition winemaking – its thick skins were resistant to rot while transported to East Coast bootleggers and its intense red color could be diluted without losing pigmentation. Pair with barbecued beef ribs, grilled hanger steak, Moroccan couscous, lamb, venison or any gamey, savory dishes or stews. Only 5 barrels made.