Everyone knows that Pat Kuleto has great style. A quick whirl through the revolving door at Boulevard, a paddle through Waterbar or a glass of white under the sea fantasia that is Farallon are all convincing of that. However, he's also been producing some pretty stellar wines from his Napa Valley ranch for the last few years.

I was moved to write about this after tasting his 2006 Zinfandel the other day. Zin is not usually one of my favorite varieties. I've got nothing personal against the grape, it's just that it's usually so rich, jammy, low in acid and dense.  You might as well be drinking grape-flavored motor oil. But this is exactly why the 2006 Kuieto Zin is such a find - it's the rare Zinfandel that is also a table wine. It's got deep cherry, coffee and bramble flavors, as you'd expect, but it's also balanced, suavely lean and wonderfully structured. If you're only used to the other kind of Zin, this will be a revelation.

Look for it at one of Pat's restaurants or order it from here.