The Zinfandel grape is one of Croatian heritage.  It is suspected that the grape may have been imported from Austria in the early 1800’s where it landed in, of all places, Boston.  With the great California Gold Rush of 1849, agricultural interests turned to the east coast of the United States for shipment of plant material.  Zinfandel was included in this “material” and it didn’t take but a few years for Napa and Sonoma to begin cultivating the grape. 

For the next odd 140 years, it seems as thought no one really gave much thought to substantiating the origins and genetics of the grape until DNA profiling in the early 1990’s established that Zinfandel is one and the same as the Primitivo grape of Southern Italy.  Not to be satisfied there, further testing revealed a Croatian grape variety that seemed to be a cross between Zinfandel and another Croatian grape.  This more firmly suggested a Croatian origin of the grape which has been further supported by the discovery of an ancient and nearly extinct variety that DNA testing has established as Zinfandel.

The Zinfandel grape ranks third in California, behind Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, in acreage planted and third behind Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon in tonnage crushed.  Zinfandel is planted in over 10% of the state’s wine vineyards.  While most identify the grape with California, it is, in fact, grown in many other states from the southwest to the Midwest and even the northeast (Massachusetts and New York).

Zinfandel vines can be very vigorous and grow best in warm, but not hot, climes in well drained soil.  As the variety is thin skinned and the grapes tend to grow in clusters, poor drainage and over populated clusters can result in bunch rot.  Bunches often ripen unevenly, yielding clusters with small, bitter green grapes intermingled with mature, ripe grapes.  Once the grapes reach full maturity, it is important to harvest them quickly, otherwise risking those grapes turning to raisins.  The unevenness of ripening adds a laborious task for the vineyard manager, often requiring several passes in order to fully harvest the grapes. The fruit ripens early and often produces juice with a high sugar content. 

There are many different styles of Zinfandel ranging from the rich and dark to light and fruity, from sweet to dry, rose or white and even a sparkling and dessert wine.  The reason for such variability stems from the uneven ripening discussed above.  If the grapes ripen unevenly and you harvest that bunch as is, the quality of the Zin produced will yield different results than if you had harvested only those grapes that were perfectly ripened.  Imagine some bunches with fully ripened grapes intermingled with green grapes.  Or how about fully ripened grapes with overly ripened and dried raisin like fruit.  There is a reason why top Zinfandel is costly…..it is very laborious and costly to produce high quality wine.  That being said, it is worth every penny if you wish to experience truly stellar Zinfandel.  These wines are deep and rich, with dark fruit and a jammy, raisin like character.  Most reveal an obvious peppery sensation on the tongue along some chocolate and licorice.   Aged in American Oak, imparting just a hint of its flavor, this wine begs for burgers or steak.  The rich and dark Zins, while drinkable on release, also have some aging potential that can bring out the dried fruit and spice of the wine.  On the other hand, the lighter, fruity Zins should be consumed within the first couple of years of release.  Aging those wines will only dull the freshness of the fruit later on.

While many California regions grow Zinfandel grapes, there are those that seem to produce wonderful wines vintage after vintage.  The Amador region in the Sierra Foothills, has a reputation of producing big and full bodied  Zins (Renwood, Montevina).  The Santa Cruz Mtn. AVA which includes the Santa Clara and Santa Cruz Valleys, produces deep and complex wine (Ridge Vineyards, David Bruce, Bonny Doon).  Sonoma County (SC) is the second largest Zinfandel producing land area and produces wines from the light and juicy to the deep, spicy and jammy (Cline Cellars, Dutton-Goldfield, Hartford Court, Hook & Ladder, Limerick Lane, Paradise, Quivira, Ravenswood, Rosenblum, Seghesio, Siduri ).  The San Luis Obispo region yields rather soft Zins while the Napa region produces the heavier and jammy style (Biale-great single vineyard wine, Elyse, Grgich, Markham, Saddleback, Storybook Mtn, Turley).  The Russian River Valley (RRV) can produce some nice Zins but better to try them during the warmer vintages (’05, ’06 and ’07).  Mendocino county can produce some very nice Zins, although their numbers are definitely in the minority as compared to its neighbors and Lodi offers some nice wines as well.  Check out our Wine Finder for locations, descriptions and pricing of some of these wines.   

To locate a favorite Zinfandel in Tucson, click on to the Wine Finder Zinfandel section here.

Tags: primitivo, Zinfandel