×
Red
750ml
Bottle: $41.82
12 bottles: $40.98
Floral aromatics of violets and red flowers, with a bright palate of fresh yet salty berry and dense but ripe,...
12 FREE
Red
750ml
Bottle: $54.55
12 bottles: $53.46
• 100% Zinfandel. • Sourced from estate vineyard in St. Helena. • All native fermentation. • Aged for 11...
12 FREE
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $17.37
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Dark colour and a nose with notes of spices and pepper, as well as ripe and jammy red berries....
12 FREE
Red
750ml
Bottle: $18.94
12 bottles: $18.56
12 FREE
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $38.94 $40.00
12 bottles: $38.16
A real briar patch of a Zin, with appealingly rustic wild cherry, spiced cinnamon and bay leaf accents that take on...
12 FREE
WS
92
Red
750ml
Bottle: $33.88
12 bottles: $33.20
12 FREE
Red
750ml
Bottle: $34.94
6 bottles: $34.24
This full-bodied wine is strongly shaped by firm tannins and a spicy, new-oak quality that fills the aroma with...
12 FREE
WE
91
Red
750ml
Bottle: $56.74
Black Sears Zinfandel shows Howell Mountain's exotic, ground white pepper and spicebox in the nose, and even more so...
12 FREE
Red
750ml
Bottle: $40.08
6 bottles: $32.00
This is a very good, richly flavored wine, quite full bodied and generously spiced, with vanilla and brown sugar notes.
WE
89
WS
89
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $58.26
The 2018 Geyserville is a blend of 68% Zinfandel, 20% Carignane, 10% Petite Sirah and 2% Alicante Bouschet. It's...
WA
96
JD
95

Mavrodaphne Zinfandel 2018 375ml 750ml

In the Archaea region, high in the Northern Peloponnese mountains, the predominant grape varietal grown is the prized Mavrodaphne. Meaning 'Black Laurel', the Mavrodaphne grapes have extremely dark skins, and ripen slowly under the Greek sunshine, helped by the mineral rich soils the vines thrive in. This grape varietal is mostly used to produce the opaque, inky fortified wine of the same name, which is popular all over Greece and elsewhere in the world. This fortified wine allows the grapes to really show off their complex and fascinating flavors, which range from a rich marzipan to flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet coffee, dried figs and prunes, as well as plenty of jammy fruit notes.

Mavrodaphne is produced in a traditional method which involves leaving the grape juice exposed to the sun in large vats, before having its fermentation halted by the addition of various distillates taken from previous successful vintages. This mixture contains plenty of residual sugar, which gives the end result its characteristic sticky sweetness, and also helps with the next fermentation process, which typically takes place in large underground cellars. The final product is a heady drink, absolutely bursting with unusual, rich and sweet flavors and carried in a dark and slightly viscous Port-like liquid.

Mavrodaphne grapes are also used for the production of still red wines, but are generally blended with varietals such as Agiorgitiko or imported grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon. Mavrodaphne grapes are excellent for mellowing more acidic varieties, and producing deliciously rounded wines, which have taken the international market by storm in recent decades.

Additional Information on Greek Wines


Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?

The precise origins of what became known as the Zinfandel grape variety are uncertain, although it has clear genetic equivalents in both Puglia and Croatia. However, when it was brought to the New World in the mid 19th century, it became known as the Zinfandel, and has been consistently popular and widely grown ever since. These very dark and very round grapes have a remarkably high sugar content, resulting in relatively high levels of alcohol in the wines they are made into, with bottles often displaying as much as fifteen percent. What makes the Zinfandel such an interesting grape, though, is the fact that the flavors produced by this varietal vary considerably depending on the climate they are grown in. In cooler valley regions, the Zinfandel grapes result in wines which hold strong flavors of tart and sweet fruits; raspberry, redcurrant and sweet cherry, held in a very smooth and silky liquid. Conversely, warmer regions result in more complex and spicy notes, including anise, pepper and hedgerow berries.