02 Jul Please The Palate Wine of the Week: Trail Marker Wine Co. Kid Sister 2022 Zweigelt, Mokelumne Glen Vineyard, Lodi

Some wines need years in the cellar. Other wines invite quiet contemplation as they are swirled in the glass. And then there are wines like Kid Sister’s Zweigelt, best enjoyed with a chill playlist, good food, and absolutely no overthinking. Light, juicy, and full of personality, that is why the Kid Sister 2022 Zweigelt from the Mokelumne Glen Vineyard is the Please The Palate wine of the week.

About Kid Sister

Kid Sister is the second label of Trail Marker, a brand that was started in 2012 by Emily Virgil and Drew Huffine. Drew began working in wine while attending UCSB and then worked at Colorado Wine Company in Los Angeles while getting his master’s degree. After meeting Kent Humphrey of Eric Kent Wins, Drew moved north to work harvest and never stopped. Emily came from the entertainment industry, where she spent years on set as a costume stylist in Los Angeles. Emily and Drew met just before he was about to fly off to work a harvest in New Zealand. They established a long-distance relationship, and when he came back to the US, Emily and Drew moved together to Northern California. Drew worked at iconic brands Copain, DuMol, Kosta Brown, Wither Hills, Tuck Beckstoffer Wines, and R2 Wine/Roessler Cellars before becoming the head winemaker at LIOCO in 2018 2018. Emily worked in sales and marketing for Bluxome Street Winery in SF and LIOCO Wines in Healdsburg. With no mortgage and no kids, they decided to make their own wine and started Trail Marker Wines.

As the name suggests, Trail Marker seeks out special vineyards, specifically cooler, coastal sites. They source fruit from small, responsibly farmed vineyards from Mendocino to Santa Cruz. Their winemaking style is to produce balanced wines that are high in acid and low in alcohol and are pure expressions of the grapes. Trail Marker specializes in small lots of high-elevation Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, as well as Gamay, Trousseau, and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Kid Sister wines are more playful and are about “enjoying life’s little joys”. These are wines that don’t take themselves seriously and are to be enjoyed! The grapes for Kid Sister wines are sourced from the Mokelumne Glen Vineyard in Lodi. In addition to Zweigelt, they also source Blaufrankisch and Kerner.

Tasting Notes

Zweigelt, a crossing of St. Laurent and Blaufrankisch, is Austria’s most popular red grape variety. It can make a fruity, snappy and spicy wine or full bodied, extracted wines. The Kid Sister Zweigelt is on the lighter side at 12.6%ABV. The wine is a vibrant purple color coming out of the bottle. That vibrancy continues onto the nose with fresh red berry and cranberry aromas. On the palate, the wine is between light and medium bodies and has soft tannins and juicy, electric acidity. An added chill on the wine just enhances all of these aromas and flavors.

Food Pairing

Being a lighter-bodied Zweigelt, this is a super versatile wine to pair with a range of casual, flavorful dishes. The light tannins are a match for roasted chicken with lemon and herbs. Try a mushroom pizza and bring out the earthy notes of the wine. Seared salmon or fried chicken are other recommended pairings. I enjoy a couple glasses of this wine with a Mediterranean plate of grilled chicken and vegetables over rice with hummus and baba ganoush. But even after my meal, I continued to enjoy this wine on its on. It is what some might call “gulp-able”.

Where To Purchase

Trail Marker Wine Co’s Kid Sister 2022 Zweigelt, Mokelumne Glen Vineyard, Lodi retails for $30 and can be purchased on the Trail Marker Wine Co website.