About the Wine:The reddish-purple hues of the inaugural release of our red blend, Mirassou 211 California Sunset Red, are reminiscent of a beautiful California sunset. As the Pinot Noir pioneers to California, we are paying tribute to this elegant grape that we introduced here more than a century ago by letting it take the lead in this blend. Its sophisticated flavors of pomegranate and dark cherry are well-complemented by Zinfandels spice notes and red fruit flavors. To enhance the features of both varieties while rounding out the mouthfeel, we added a touch of Merlot.Viticulture Notes:A majority of the grapes for our 211 Sunset Red Blend were selected from Lodi. Here, the warm days are tempered by cool breezes from the nearby Lodi Delta, giving the fruit excellent concentration, with elegant ripe red fruit characteristics. The 211 vintage was cooler, lighter and later than usual. A cool summer, followed by early autumn rains, prolonged the growing season and delayed harvest throughout Lodi. The longer, cooler growing season allowed the grapes to maintain a lower sugar level, leading to more flavorful, elegant wines. In our Zinfandel from Lodi, especially, we could taste the juicier and more approachable characteristics distinctive of this region.Food and Wine Pairings Belgian Endive Salad Belgian Endive with Dried Cherry Quinoa Salad Cherry Bread PuddingCherry Bread Pudding Sunset Sliders Sunset Sliders Sweet Potato Fries Sweet Potato FriesWinemaker Notes:The Pinot Noir grapes for our 211 Sunset Red Blend were fermented at a maximum of 8°F a slightly lower temperature than the other varieties in the blend allowing the wine to develop at an optimal pace, while gently extracting elegant varietal flavors. We blended Zinfandel grapes to give the wine a unique, full-bodied texture, while Merlot added a rounder mouthfeel.