Winey Tasting Notes: Barking Good! Portrait of a Mutt Zinfandel

I have a confession to make. Don’t judge me. But — I have been buying Christmas gifts since August. OK, I know that sounds horribly annoying. And I would happily choke someone who says “I’ve had my Christmas shopping done since Labor Day”. And yes, I would choke them with a string of Christmas lights.

But there is a reason I’ve been collecting Christmas gifts since then. I am a member of a Secret Elf gift exchange. This group is made up of West Point Moms from all over the country, and starting on September 1st, we put on our pointy ears and jingling elf hats and send our designated giftee an ornament each month until the big reveal on December 1st. It’s so much fun and it gives you total permission to creep on Facebook and Twitter and Pinterest accounts to find out what your Giftee likes. So lots of us get ornaments or decorations that are personalized with our Cadet’s name and year, that celebrate the breed of doggie we have or highlight our home state.(I can’t go into tooooo much detail on this or I may give myself away!)

Well of course I decorated my walker.

My September ornament proved that my Elf knows I have a little white doggie! So cute. But it was my October gift that pretty much brought tears to my eyes. You see, it has been a rather, well, let’s say interesting summer here in Winey Mom land. To make a long story short, I kind of blew a gasket in my spine and wound up having some major (translate: OUCH!) spinal surgery in August. Even if I wanted to, which I didn’t, I wasn’t allowed to drive for 7 weeks. (On the plus side, I was also banned from housework. Not that I suggest it as a way to get out of cleaning..) Many of my West Point mom pals knew this because I arrived at our son’s Ring Weekend (Bully for My Firstie & Ring Weekend at West Point) with a walker. And lots of pain pills.

Well my Elfie did her homework, because my “Christmas” gift for October was a bottle of wine! And not just any wine – it was a doggie themed wine. The card read “This little Elf heard you were not feeling well.” Just what the doctor ordered!

,The wine was Portrait of A Mutt Zinfandel (2007, 14.5, California) from the Mutt Lunch Winery. (I’m loving this!) Keeping with the mutt theme, some Carignane is blended into it. It’s a very autumnal dusty red color and brings oak and raspberry and some earthy spices to your nose. The taste is doggone wonderful! Warm oak and raspberry and blueberry flow through your mouth when you sip it. There is a tinge of that spice again  at the end. It finishes up with warm berries and spices and a some pepper (Mutt says that’s the Carignane showing through). When I was making notes to review this wine I wrote “SMOOTH, VELVETY” in really big letters. Obviously, this mutt made quite an impression on me, huh? ( Shopping note: Mutt Lynch is a smaller winery
so the easiest way to get your paws on this might be to order directly from them.)

I have become a big fan of California Zinfandels and this wine just helps to seal my approval. It’s really everything you want in a Zinfandel – fruity, but with layers of spice and a kiss of oak. I love the wine, love the doggie theme and love the Elf (whoever she is) who sent it. It was the perfect pick me up after a long and achy summer.

As the label says, “Just because I’m not pedigreed doesn’t mean I’m not a good dog!” VERY good dog! Very wonderful Elf!

Cheers!