Wine of the Week: Kenwood Vineyards, 2007 Sonoma County Zinfandel

<p>Pat Henderson says Mother Nature should call the shots.</p><p>The senior winemaker is behind our wine-of-the-week winner – the Kenwood Vineyards, 2007 Sonoma County Zinfandel at $14.</p><p>“One thing that I have learned is you can't - or shouldn't - try to shove a square peg into a round hole,” Henderson said. </p><p>“That is to say that you have to make the wine in a style that showcases the best qualities of the vineyard that the grapes came from and not try to force it to be something it isn't.” </p><p>Henderson said he's been intrigued with wine since his teens when he helped some neighbors make home-made wine. He went to UC Davis but didn't consider winemaking initially because he didn't come from a winemaking family. </p><p>“Then I decided if it was what I wanted to do for a living, I could just make it happen,” he said. </p><p>“I worked my first harvest the summer after my freshman year and knew right away it was what I wanted to do with my life.”</p><p>A veteran of 29 vintages, Henderson said the trick in making great zinfandel is keeping a steady eye on it. </p><p>“We taste the wine every day while it is in our fermentation tanks on the skins and you see your first glimpse of what the wine will ultimately taste like,” he said. </p><p>“The challenge with zinfandel is that the grapes are a little riper when they come in so zinfandel tends to have some problems finishing fermentation. </p><p>“Since we definitely want to bottle a dry wine to go well with food, we keep a close eye on it all they way though fermentation and make sure the yeasts stay happy so they will finish their job.”</p><p>]Staff writer Peg Melnik can be reached at 707-521-5310 or peg.melnik@pressdemocrat.com.</p>