From: RICHARD_A_FLORES@convene.com To: LUPIC@sprynet.com Subject: ZINFANDEL IS A TREASURE FROM CROATIA Reply-to: RICHARD_A_FLORES@convene.com Date: Fri, 28 Mar 97 9:00:01 PST Message-ID: <9703280900.aa04987@convene2.convene.com>
Reply from Richard A Flores to #97.74509 From LUPIC@SPRYNET.COM ("Jack (Zeljko) Lupic"), Thu Mar 27 at 5:48p Lupic: As promised, below find the article written by Patrick Fagen, two years prior to the writing by MG, you have discovered. Thank you for your interest in Zinfandel grapes. Mike's article was published last year and does not provide academic validity nor is it considered the definitive souce on the history of Zinfandel grapes in America -- any more than Patrick's was when it was released. The search for the "true" identity of Zinfandel will continue, as will all reasonable explainations be embraced. Such is the American tradition of welcoming all plausable contributions to modern history. More than 63 clonal varietals fo Zinfandel are currently under examination in the Heritage Vineyard. Many others are available. Each has a rich and distinguised history that is different then the other. Each are providing contributions to the legacy of Zinfandel in America. Please feel free to forward any other stories on the history of the Zinfandel grape. The below article by Patrick is another contribution to the history of Zinfandel. --- Original Note #97.74509 From LUPIC@SPRYNET.COM ("Jack (Zeljko) Lupic"), Thu Mar 27 at 5:48p --- >"There are >three major clones, and 'Mali' is the best because of the small grapes." He >further explains that the word "Mali" means small, >while "plav" means blue, for the bluish tint of the grapes hanging on the >vines and for the deep color of the young vines. ============== Zinfandel by Patrick W Fegan It's happening less often now, but if you order a glass of "Zinfandel" in a restaurant, the waiter is still likely to bring a pink wine. "White Zinfandel" was, and to a degree still is, California's response to an economic slump, in this case, a lot of Zinfandel planted and very few takers of the "red" type. But the trend is dying; and waiters--and consumers--are becoming better educated and more sophisticated and are looking to trade up. The first instinct is to move to another grape: Cabernet, Merlot or Pinot; but more and more are "staying the course" and learning what Zinfandel's true colors are. What follows is a look at the "Zinfandel Story" and a collection of recommendations. Zinfandel is called "California's Grape" for, with the exception of a few wineries in Australia, South Africa, Mexico and, recently Oregon, no other area produced any Zinfandel-labeled wine. The grape, like all of the vinifera species Americans originally planted, came from European vineyards. It's not known as Zinfandel there: we invented the name. But it is widely planted in Puglia, Italy where its 42,000 acres are called "Primitivo". It's also found along the Dalmatian coast of Croatia to the tune of 7,500 acres where it is known as "Mali Plavac". The mysterious entry of the "Zinfandel" grape onto the American scene is too involved to go into here, but a good read on the subject is David Darlington's "Angel's Visits" (Henry Holt, $10.95). Because its origins have been so murky, Zinfandel in America has no traditions, and, hence, no rudder. That is, unlike Cabernet and Pinot noir which are related winewise, respectively, to Bordeaux and to Burgundy and their traditions of winemaking and styles, Zinfandel's clouded background has kept its use open, vague. For example, where Cabernet grapes the world over are traditionally used to make wines along the lines of red Bordeaux--dry, red, oak-aged, often ageable--Zinfandel's lack of a tradition has left its producers open as to style. There are, of course, "White", "Rose" and "Blush" Zinfandels, simple, vinous cotton-candy. At the other end of the taste-spectrum, there are those made like Porto--sweet, alcoholic after-dinner wines. And there are versions that recall the fruity simplicity of Beaujolais (look for the Parducci, Pedroncelli or the Marietta versions all under $8). Lastly there is the category of Zinfandels made by producers who want to emulate Bordeaux wines and who treat the grape more like Cabernet (these are treated at length below). You might think that this is a net plus, with winemakers free to experiment with all types of wines from the grape, not just one. It's true! There is artistic freedom in the wineworld! But in terms of the label, in terms of marketing the wine, in terms of what the consumer expects from a wine called "Zinfandel", it is a promoter's nightmare. That begs the obvious question: Why, then, is there so much Zinfandel planted in California (it's the 2nd most widely planted red variety after Cabernet Sauvignon)? The reasons are many. At one time, Zinfandel was the perfect red grape. For one, being a Mediterranean variety, it can handle the heat of California. As it has a distinctive character (plums, cranberries, prunes), it was also widely used to add interest to the generic and neutral California blends--the "Clarets", the "Burgundies", the "Chiantis". Lastly, Zinfandel gives good yields: farmers can get 3 to 5 or more tons per acre which could provide a living if not a Mercedes. Then, "blends" died as Americans began to "drink up"; that is, for various reasons, we started to drink fewer but "better" wines. We wanted Cabernets and Pinots and, more recently Merlots and Syrahs, red wines from grapes that had not only more tradition, more connection to a European style of wine, but also more press. Zinfandel had neither. Enter "White Zinfandel". This interpretation allowed winegrowers to utilize their grapes towards a quicker if lighter end. If their Zinfandel would not sell as a dry red wine, why not strip them and sell them as a "blush". This takes advantage of a red grape's ability to make a "white" wine if its skin is only minimally utilized; that is, if only a portion of the color in the skin is extracted. Usually, this is done by allowing the skins to have only a brief contact with the juice--sometimes only an hour, often only an evening. No matter the time, it enabled a winemaker to create an ersatz white wine from a red grape he or she had in surplus. Fortunately, this coincided with our growing taste for white wine. "White Zin" is still big, but its boom-time is past. From 1985 to 1988, as demand for this new version grew, prices for Zinfandel fruit went from $269 per ton to $817, a 204% increase (Cabernet Sauvignon, by contrast, increased by 54% over the same 4-year period). At that price-point it became difficult to make a $3 White Zinfandel and wineries went looking for other red grapes with which to make "white" wines. They noticed 13,000 acres of Grenache out there and that helped Zinfandel prices to plummet to $363 in 1991. Currently, Zinfandel in the "claret" style is experiencing a revival of sorts (meaning that they are made like red Bordeaux which as a group are called "clarets" by the British). This is a positive move, I believe; but given the lack of experience with this style, some interpretations are more succesful than others, especially at the trendy new high prices (a recent survey of wine shops showed an average bottle price of $11.50). For instance, Zinfandel is notorious for quirky, flash-ripening, which means that a winemaker intending to make a well-balanced 12.5% alcohol table wine perfect for pasta might wind up making a 14% off-dry red wine better suited to the cheese course. Linked with this characteristic is a lack of acidity in some finished wines. An example is the 1991 Rosenblum from the "Hendry Vineyard" ($15): a lush and flavorful wine but one so devoid of balancing acid that it's hard to figure what to eat with it. California has over 34,000 acres of this red grape, fully 37% of which is planted in San Joaquin county alone which is the source of much "White Zinfandel". The North Coast, including Napa and, especially, Sonoma counties, boasts 8,400 acres of Zinfandel. From these areas comes a collection of reliable producers making lighter or richer wines along the "claret" line. Among the lighter versions, look for Ch. Souverain, Gundlach-Bundschu, Franciscan's "Oakville" ($8) and Kendall-Jackson's "Vintners Reserve", all under $10. Good medium weight versions include the Kenwood regular ($13), the Quivira ($12), the Caymus ($10), the Hop Kiln ($14), the Sky ($13), the absolutely stunning Steele "Catfish" vineyard from Lake County ($12) and the very Bordeaux-like Clos du Val ($12). In a league of its own is the 1991 Nalle ($15): if you like the flavor of Chianti but want more fruit and structure, you'll love this one. Some of these vineyards were planted between 50 and 100 years ago. The yields are tiny, often less than a ton; but as with the fruit from most healthy old vines, it can be quite concentrated and interesting. If you see the term "old vine" on the (front or back) label expect a richer version of Zin than that from a younger patch of vineyard. Try the Seghesio ($12), Kendall-Jackson's "Proprietor's Grande Reserve" ($15), Fritz ($10), Kenwood's Barricia" ($11) or Kunde's "Shaw Vineyard" ($13) for the experience. The Cline "Reserve" ($15), from extremely old vines in Contra Costa county across the bay, is also worth seeking out. In addition, about 10% of all the Zinfandel is planted in the Sierra Foothills region east of Sacramento, especially in Amador county. It was fruit from this area, specifically from the Deaver Vineyard there, which sparked the Trincheros of the Sutter Home Winery in Napa to take Zinfandel seriously more than 20 years ago. It's in Amador as well where the nation's oldest vineyard--the GrandPere, planted more than 130 years ago--is located and which until recently, provided fruit for the Santino Winery (the 1989 is still available-$15--and displays the classic foothills fruit and concentration). The more widely available Sutter Home "Reserve" isn't what it used to be but is still worth the $10. Finally, another 10% is planted in the Central Coast, especially in Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties. Old patches of the grape are found south of the Bay as well, with some older plantings in the Paso Robles area. I'll be reporting more on the Zins and other wines of these areas in an upcoming column. Copyright 1994, Patrick W Fegan FOR AOL ONLY 1) "Mali Plavac"? According to Dr Petar Males, director of the Institute for Adriatic Crops in Split, Croatia, both the Zinfandel of California and the Primitivo of southern Italy came from cuttings that are known locally as Mali Plavac, an indigenous Dalmatian variety. Why has this news taken so long to arrive? Aside from a lengthy skirmish in the area, there was just not much research activity done by the then-"Yugoslavia" government. Males suggests that the grape arrived in southern Italy a while back and was christened "Primitivo" (he gives no reason for this particular name; but if one consider that some fiercely nationalistic Italians maintain that Dalmatia--and most of Slovenia and Croatia, for that matter--is actually Italian land, one's sense of irony comes into play; more temperate minds suggest that "primitive" describes the nature of the wine--high alcohol and high sugar--when grown in that hot climate). He makes no statement about how "Zinfandel" came to America but does say that DNA and morphological comparisons of it with the Plavac are identical. For the more technically oriented, call PWFegan on AOL for the good doctor's specific chemical parameters of Mali Plavac. 2) Fred Franzia's "Zinfandel Story" is a bit different. The ex-principal of Bronco Wine Co. in the Central Valley of California is in the process of plea-bargaining his way out of a truckload of troubles. Seems he sold less interesting--and less expensive--red grapes as Zinfandel (probably Carignane, Ruby Cabernet, valley Grenache or the like) to unsuspecting wineries which later turned them into "White Zinfandel". The story is that he spread a top layer of Zinfandel fruit and leaves over the bulk stuff in the truck to convince the unloaders. In an agreement that has yet to be approved by a judge, Franzia will pay $500,000 in personal fines and will perform 500 hours of community service (how about teaching a course in grapevine identification?). Bronco will pay $2.5 million in fines. Though he resigned as Bronco's chief executive, Franzia is to retain his position as chief financial officer. Copyright 1994, Patrick W Fegan ============ Richard A Flores <richard_a_flores@convene.com>
Please take a look at the article: Croatia: The Homeland of Zinfandel