Clif Family Winery Gary's Improv Zinfandel 2009 Front Label
Clif Family Winery Gary's Improv Zinfandel 2009 Front Label

Winemaker Notes

This rich, fruit-forward wine offers intense aromas of ripe cherries and vanilla. Blackberry jam and mulled spice flavors linger on the palate. The densely layered and complex flavor profile and subtle oak influence integrate with the soft tannic structure, ending in a long and satisfying finish.

Grapes for our 2009 Gary's Improv Zinfandel were sourced from the Saviez Vineyard in Calistoga. This wine was aged in a blend of 30% new and 70% second fill American oak barrels for 16 months.

Professional Ratings

  • 91
    A powerful Zinfandel, this is dry and balanced. It' classic Napa Valley, with ripe fruit and superb tannin structure. It floods the mouth with flavors of blackberry, black currant, cedar and licorice, with touches of spices ranging from pepper to cloves and cinnamon. Terrific with lamb shanks over creamy, baked polenta.
Clif Family Winery

Clif Family Winery

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Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.

Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.

CLFIMPROV_2009 Item# 116947