If you love Zinfandel then you’ve probably heard the name Opolo Vineyards as being one of the best producers of Zinfandel in California.  It was purely on word of mouth that I reached out to this family owned winery to learn more about their wines. After the first taste of their Mountain Zinfandel, the words “Oh My God,” escaped.  If you like your wines big, robust and full of complex flavors then look no further.  This little winery nestled in Paso Robles has figured it out and their Zinfandel truely lives up to it’s reputation.

But the excitement doesn’t end there.  My family and I were very impressed with their other varietals, especially the Merlot.  This wine is so impressive that I easily rank it as one of my top 3 Merlot’s of all time!  If your a fan of Merlot, then you simply have to try this wine ASAP!  This wine has full supple flavors of plum and spice.  It was perfectly balanced and by that I mean it was not over plumy.  It was very smooth and would be excellent with a dark wrap cigar.  Someone even suggested that it would pair well with a simple pan-fried chicken breast and I thought “How often do you find a Merlot you can pair with chicken?”  We actually served it with homemade chicken tacos with rice, green onions and a special mole (mo-lay) sauce.  It was the best meal I’ve had all week.

If you like your wines big, then I highly recommend you check out Opolo Vineyards.  Be sure to also visit the Opolo Vineyards Facebook Page and see how much fun this family has making wine.