Zinc Bistro and Wine Bar - San Antonio, TX

Well, here I am out of town on business in San Antonio once again, and after a little lunch at a local fast food Italian chain, one of my fellow Air Force members, "Budda," was in the mood for some good vino tonight.  That being said, I busted out my iPad when I got back to my hotel, and looked to see where we could go tonight to enjoy a nice bottle, and grab a bite to eat.

In doing my research, the place that came up over and over again was Zinc.  In looking at their wine list, they definitely had some nice wines, and the ambiance looked nice.  That said, we also invited two of our other folks with us, and headed downtown to Zinc!

Once we got down there, it took me a minute to find it.  I knew it was near the USO and the parking garage near the USO but I couldn't remember where.  We then rounded the corner though, and there it was in it's glory.  Zinc is actually situated on a pretty quiet street, and I think that most of the traffic it sees is traffic coming out of the parking garage.


Upon walking in we were greeted by the bartender.  To the right is a gorgeous, dark wood bar that seems to be fully stocked with all the high end hard liquor you could ask for.  Behind the wall of the bar was the dining room where we were seated. On the other side of this dining room is another dining room as well.

We sat and our server came over and took drink orders.  Meanwhile, I looked at the winelist, and we ordered a few different bottles of wine!  "Budda" is indeed "The Rainmaker," and told me to pick out a couple wines under $120.  That said, I picked out a pinot noir, as well as an Italian wine, and I will talk about those in another post.  Their wine list however can be seen HERE.

Their "Bistro Menu" however was very intriguing, and there were quite a few things that I was interested in.  One thing that caught my eye was the "Boudro's Tableside Guacamole" that Zelda and I had at Boudro's, which makes me think that these two restaurants are somehow tied together.  Regardless, it was great when we were a Boudro's!

Out came out wine, and upon first sip, I asked to have the pinot noir decanted.  Moments later our server came ak with a decanter and a funnel, and decanted the wine for us.  This was a nice touch, and I wish that more restaurants in New Jersey offered this service.

For entrees tonight, we all opted for something different.  You all know me and my love for a good burger, so I opted for the Zinc Burger - with smokey cheddar, parmesan tuiles, spicy tomato aioli, bibb lettuce, and home fries.  At $9, it was an absolute bargain, with juicy flavors, and great ingredients.  The tomato aioli was a great addition, and overall the flavors rocked.  This was by far the best burger I've had in San Antonio!  It looked so good as a matter of fact that Duane ended up ordering one, even though he had already eaten dinner!

Budda had the Grilled Ham, Cheese, and Tomato - served on brioche with vegetable chips and our soup of the day or salad for $9.  He ended up opting for a Tai noodle soup of some sort that he said was delicious.  Blanche had a salad of soe sort, but in all honesty, I forget what it was.
All in all, we had a great night at Zinc,with great food, outstanding wine, and great service.  I would definitely go back there my next visit to town.  Cheers!
Zinc Bistro and Wine Bar
207 N. Presa St.
San Antonio, TX 78205-2635
Bar:     (210) 224-2900
Office: (210) 224-1313
http://zincwine.com/zinc/

2008 Sea Smoke Southing Pinot Noir

Popped and decanted tonight off of a restaurant wine list with friends at Zinc.  Ruby color in the decanter, and not looking as dark as Southings of the past, but it might have been the lighting in the restaurant.

Youthful nose with some alcohol definitely prevelant. Lots of dark berries, raspberry, black cherry, a ton of strawberry, and some anise, clove, cranberry. Over the course of 2 hours, the alcohol started to blow off.

On the palate, this seems to be the lightest, Sea Smoke I have seen in many vintages. This could however also be attributed to the fact that I haven't drank one of these this young in many of vintages.

More strawberry on the palate, but I also picked up some tight, sour cranberry as well. The wine was definitely tight, but also seemed a bit thin compared to others. Nice acidity, and definitely some alcohol on the palate to show it's youth, but again, less than in years past. What was shocking to me was how the oak in this wine really seemed to be dialed back. I don't know if this is a stylistic quality of Don's, I don't think it is a bad thing for those who consume this in it's youth.

The heat again on this wine wasn't as strong as I considered it to be on the finish, and that was shocking. I also didn't get that "Santa Rita soil" on the nose or the palate that I am very fond of, so who knows. Typically, I open this and decant them at cellar temp, and this seemed a bit warm to me.

All in all, I was shocked at how approachable this wine was from the get go. Not sure if that is Don's intention or not, but in the past I have really liked these wines with age. Overall, too early to give this wine a score, but I am happy to have an even 10 of these in the cellar as well as a mag. Cheers!