Wine Pairing for Thunderdome aka The Bachelor ‘Two on One’ date
I don’t know Nick but hope he finds love.
Awards season is upon us and La La Land is racking up the acclaim. Have you seen it yet? If you’ve been waiting for Netflix or to double feature it with another Gosling film there’s no need. Raven’s date had the exact same script as the Oscar nominee, minus a girls soccer team.
I give you my expectations vs reality meme for last week’s Bachelor Solo Date.
Expectations
Reality
Pairing episode 5 with a Zinfandel from Sonoma, California.
Croatia is the birthplace of this ancient grape — and somehow “Zin” stuck as a name vs Crljenak Kastelanski.
Regardless of your time zone, you know how crazy the evening is going to be. Basically Mad Max’s Thunderdome meets a 2 on 1 date. Likewise, Zinfandel, also known as ‘Primitivo’ in Italy, certainly packs a powerful punch. The two together is a perfect pairing.
Reason 1: THINGS ARE GETTING SPICEY!
“Zinfandel has high acidity which is often described as tasting ‘spicy.” — WineFolly
Combine that acidity with flavors of blackberry, cherry, anise, pepper, mocha and 5-spice powder, and you’ve got a fruity and rich wine.
High in acidity and high in alcohol too. The Zinfandel grape thrives in warmer weather causing the grape to ripen with very high levels of sweetness. During fermentation, the yeast converts those sugars into alcohol leaving Zins with the highest ABV (starting at 15.5%) for non-fortified wines. Here’s the science.
Reason 2: Considering our exuberantly youthful contestants, we should be enjoying wine from older and more wiser vines.
A central piece of the American Zinfandel story are the old vines. These gnarly old vines have survived since Prohibition and yield low quantities of flavor-concentrated grapes. They naturally focus on quality over quantity.
Interesting note: Many of the estate “Old Vine” wines come from plants that are 75+ years older than Corrine and Taylor. Let’s all together strive to be like those old vines. VinePair goes into way more detail.
READERS: How can I make this better for you?
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That’s all for now — Cheers and happy Bachelor-ing!
