questions from a newbie...

[Randy Caparoso]

Don't worry about White Zinfandel needing time to "warm up." Generally speaking, the colder the better. In fact, if you yourself do not like your wine too sweet, serving it icy cold helps cut down on the sweetness.

If your host prefers White Zinfandel, not much you can do but deliver one. No, it's not the best wine for pasta, but it's a pretty decent one. You'd never see me turn it down if it's the only thing around.

You also have the option of getting a White Zin that's not so sweet. De Loach Vineyards in the Russian River region of Sonoma, for instance, makes their's just off-dry, retaining a good, zesty natural acidity on top of fresh watermelony fruitiness.
Finally, if it's within your sense of propriety, might consider a dry pink wine made from Pinot Noir; such as Robert Sinskey's Vin Gris of Pinot Noir or Toad Hollow Pinot Noir Rose. These wines would have the color, plus decent acidity, but not the sweetness.

And finally, finally: one could certainly alter the tomato sauce to introduce more of a sense of sweetness to balance out the fruitiness in the wine. This, you would do with the introduction of sun dried tomato, or else a generous portion of sweet onion or carrot. Heck, use a little White Zin in replacement with half the water you might use, and even just a judicious dose of sugar. You see, when it comes to matching wine with food it is never a lost cost if you put your mind and wherewithal to it.