Zinfandel has been called America's grape for a long time; long before DNA testing took it to Primitivo in Italy and farther back to an obscure grape in Croatia. If you really want to know the Croatian name for American Zinfandel, it's usually called Crljenak Kaštelanski, but sometimes Tribidrag. Hey, you asked.
Let's say you are looking to buy a bottle of California Zin. How should you go about that? Some help follows.
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| Inside Lou Preston's tasting room in Dry Creek Valley |
When you shop for a wine, there are usually several factors used to pick out a bottle. For most of us, price is the top priority. After that it might be the producer, the region the wine was grown in (appellation), the store's shelf talker, "This wine got 92 Points," or maybe the pretty label.
Let's look at the factors that matter.
Price
Premium Zinfandels are mostly priced in the $30s, $40s, and $50s. More than that is where they fall into what wineries say, "Some people just like to pay too much for their wine." At least that's my hard line for buying Zin; yours might be $25 or $75. There are still good ones in the $20s, btw.
Producer
Unless you are already knowledgeable when it comes to Zinfandel, or any other wine, the name of the producer might not help. There might be a lot of wines from a particular winery on the store shelf, but does this mean they are the best? Not necessarily, it usually means they are a large volume producer with good distribution in retail. Sometimes the best wines come from wineries you've never heard of.
Some of the well-known producers in California are Bedrock, Biale, Dry Creek, Ridge, Rosenblum, Seghesio, Storybook Mountain, and Turley. There are many more. Others will be mentioned below under Sonoma County.
Appellation & Vineyard
There are several counties in the state making excellent Zinfandel. Within these counties there are well-known appellations, each with a distinct style. Some of the main ones follow. I will spend the most time on Sonoma County because that's what I know best.
Amador County in the Sierra Foothills
The main appellations for Zinfandel in Amador are Shenandoah Valley and Fiddletown.
The wines are full-bodied, often rustic with balanced ripe fruit. There is a lot of old vine Zinfandel with its own unique characteristics in Amador.
The most interesting vineyard is the Original Grand Pere Vineyard, first planted in 1869, and the oldest documented Zinfandel in the state.
Napa County near the North Coast
Howell Mountain is considered the top spot for concentrated, full-bodied Zinfandel. You'll find it grown in many places in Napa, though Zin takes a backseat to Cabernet, Chardonnay, Merlot, and Sauvignon Blanc.
In general, Napa Zinfandel is full-bodied, with bright fruit, and is well-balanced. Though some are very full-bodied, fruit-forward, and high in alcohol.
San Joaquin County in the Central Valley
The Lodi area is well-known for Zinfandel. There are a lot of old vine wines in this area.
Because of the climate, the wines are soft and full-bodied, a very popular Zin style. The wines can be high alcohol, but usually don't show it as heat in the wine.
Wines from this area are usually less expensive, making these wines quite popular.
A few of the notable old vineyards are Jessie's Grove, Lizzy James, and Mohr-Fry. Marian's Vyd, part of Mohr-Fry's vineyards, was planted in 1901 on original Zinfandel rootstock (not grafted), a rarity.
San Luis Obispo County on California's Central Coast
The Paso Robles region is known for Zinfandel, along with Cabernet and Rhone varietals.
These are big, full-bodied, fruit forward, jammy, and higher alcohol Zins.
Some of the older, noteworthy vineyards are Dusi, Ueberroth and Saint Marie.
Sonoma County on the North Coast
Sonoma is known for its range of microclimates, giving diverse wine styles. Zinfandel definitely shows its range in the cool to hot growing areas and different soils.
Major appellations:
Dry Creek Valley - Rocky soils and moderate temps give rich, concentrated wine. Maybe the best balanced Zins and a classic style.
Moon Mountain - Unique volcanic soils on mountain terrain yielding Zinfandel that's vibrant, rich, with black fruit. Along with Rockpile, Moon Mtn Zin is a bit rare and sought after by Zin geeks.
Rockpile - Small growing area with mountain soils and climate yielding highly sought after wines.
Russian River Valley - A cooler region with lighter color and body and blue fruit flavors. If big, heavy Zins aren't your thing, check out RRV.
Sonoma Valley - Wines of spicy red and black fruit with a moderate body.
Some of the notable vineyards are Jackass Hill, Maple, Monte Rosso, Old Hill Ranch, Pagani, and Rockpile.
I don't know how many of the 400-plus wineries in the county produce Zinfandel, but there are a lot. This wine is considered a bit of a local treasure. Here are some of the many Sonoma Zinfandel producers:
A Rafanelli, Armida, Bedrock, Battaglini, Bella, De Loach, Dry Creek, Harvest Moon, Limerick Lane, Kokomo, Mauritson, Mazzocco, Nalle, Pedroncelli, Quivira, Ridge/Lytton Springs, Rockpile, St. Francis, Seghesio, and Wilson. I've left out a lot of them, but trying not to overwhelm you. :)
Alcohol Percentage
When I buy wine, I check the percentage alcohol on the label. This gives me an idea of what's in the bottle because a 14% Zinfandel is a lot different that a 15% one. Zin tends to often run on the high side, especially those grown in warmer regions. Some people like those big 15.8% Zins; some of us prefer 14.x%
Styles
Alcohol percentage and other factors determine the style of a particular Zinfandel. There are two distinct styles; what I can the drier, traditional, lower alcohol ones and the fruit forward, softer, higher alcohol wines. Not every Zin falls easily into one of these camps because this is a generalization. You have to decide for yourself if like one or the other or both.
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| Head pruned old vine Zinfandel |
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