Zinfandel: Love It, or Loved It and Left?

Inspired by David Bueker's Random Rumblins (#5), and hoping it was more than a vinegary dyspepsia from the winter of his vinous discontent, I too began to muse on Zinfandel and relationships.

I wonder how the others of us have fared with Zinfandel? Did we fall in love with that spicy variety, only to see it change before our eyes into some sloven and over-ripe jammy mess? Or can it still captivate us with its seductive allure of hedonistic excess?

Has Zinfandel changed...or is it we who have changed? Is the old relationship just not enough anymore, and we need to look elsewhere for fulfillment and fruition?

So I thought I'd stop making really bad analogies and labored metaphors and put forth a poll to see exactly where we stand with Zinfandel these days.

So if you choose to vote, pick the one closest to how you feel about Zin.

And, as always, your comments are appreciated.

As with my posted "Hatin' on the (American) Pinot" thread, there is a lot of bad Zinfandel out there, but sometimes one finds beautiful wines. By "bad," I don't like the sweet wines, and I really don't like the fumey cough syrup character of too many Zins.

One recently that caught my palate: Robert Craig "Black Sears" Howell Mountain. Other recent winners have included the Ravenswood Todd Vineyard, Chateau Potelle Mount Veeder SGS, Sky Mount Veeder 2002 (not 2001!). DiArie 2004 Old Vine wasn't bad, and the Noah Las Chamizales Sonoma Valley 2003 was very quaffable, if verging on too syrupy. Heck, there is a critter label zin from Sonoma called Big Ass Zin that, while somewhat generic red wine, was very quaffable and pleasant.

I would vote the third option " Loved it then, and still do," except that it has the additional statement, "It's the variety for me no matter what."

My choices in variety are always dependent on what the opportunity cost of consuming a bottle of that variety versus what else I could be consuming. If I cross out the second statement, I fear my ballot would be invalidated in a hand recount.

Suffice to say, zinfandel was very appealing to me earlier in my wine drinking experiences, and I still find zinfandels that excite me, some hedonistic and over-the-top and some more restrained and more 'different'. I also run into plenty of the sloven and the jammy that don't capture my fancy. It might be my approach to wine where I've never 'overindulged' in a region or a variety or even a style of wine to the extent that I tire of it. At least, not yet.

I still love it. But I've never promised it monogamy.

I chose "every now and again," but of course the story's more complex than that. To paraphrase Reagan, "I didn't leave Zinfandel; it left me." I still have a fair collection of Ridge "Zin"s and still look to a few other producers for Zinfandel: Dashe, Nalle, Swan, Bella. But most Zins I find too simple, too confected and too alcoholic for service with food, which is almost invariably what I look for wine to do. (If I want wine as digestif I'll reach for Port) Cline, Seghesio and Ravenswood I used to buy, but shifts in their winemaking have taken them off my radar screen.

Mark Lipton

[David M. Bueker]

I got tired and moved on, but mostly I got tired of what most of it became and moved on. As I said in my rumblings post, I still buy Ridge and Dashe because they are wine, not raspberry lighter fluid. I'm sure there's other good ones, but there's only so much space in the cellar, and the two I listed cover the field for me.

Ridge, Dashe, Nalle, Storybook, some others. Still the best wine for certain kinds of barbeque.

I guess I'm just Zinnish. Maybe it's where I live.....

John

Love it.

For me there are two possibilities.

Ridge I would drink every day.

Most other Zins I drink here or there and am rarely impressed.

Ridge, Dashe, Nalle, Storybook, some others. Still the best wine for certain kinds of barbeque.

Ah, yes, Storybook. I think that I have more of it in the cellar than any other save Ridge.

Mark Lipton

For me there are two possibilities.

Ridge I would drink every day.

Most other Zins I drink here or there and am rarely impressed.

Matt:

I voted FOR Zinfandel because your post reminded me of the really great quality, consistent performance, and very fair pricing of Ridge wines, esp. with their Zins over many, many years!!

Marco

I've hardly ever had the stuff. Not a common variety over here. Can't really form an opinion.

Matilda

As is the case with several others, Zinfandel can produce excellent wines and I enjoy them when they are excellent. Depends on the producer more than the variety.

Best
Rogov

Enjoy it thoroughly every now and then. Italian Primitivo, on the other hand, I always enjoy.

I voted every now and again.
At dinner with a friend at his home, Liz and I were presented with a glass of 2005 Earthquake Zin as cocktails. It’s a big, alcoholly wine, over 15% I think, that tasted wonderful. It had big mouth feel, was dry but retained a fruity taste that was nicely offset by the alcohol, long finish. The 2005 and 2006 are currently the only zins in my cellar and I don’t drink them often but when you want one, you need one.

Don't buy much, mostly Ridge and Dashe. There was a period when I probably went through a case of the '99 basic Cline, but that seemed to be a one-off, no other vintage appealed to me as much. I probably go through 5-6 bottles of Zin in a year, though I'm happy to taste at offlines or parties.

So tell me re Storybrook. I'm intrigued because I'm not familiar with it. According to WSearcher not very available!

It's one of those things I just don't "get" - I've tried a handful ranging in style from Dashe and Ridge to the bigger Turley, Martinelli (ugh) and Carlisle versions and the only one I've really enjoyed sitting down with was a Ridge Geyserville.

So tell me re Storybrook. I'm intrigued because I'm not familiar with it. According to WSearcher not very available!

Storybook Mountain is owned/run by Dr. Jerry Seps and his charming wife. Dr. Seps was one of the founding members of ZAP, along with Joel Peterson and Kent Rosenblum and if their style has changed at all in the past 30 years, I didn't notice it. They are Zin specialists and have historically made 3-4 different cuvées. The Reserve bottling sees the longest time in (old) oak, is typically the tightest and longest-lived of the wines; in the past decade or so, my favorite bottling has been the Eastern Exposures, which usually sees a bit of viognier added and is a bit more forward (that is to say, I only age it for 10 or so years). Their Zins are often referred to as "Claret-like," though really they're just highly structured Zins. The Mayacamas Range bottling I've had a couple of times at the winery, but I don't have a clear sense of what it's all about. The wines are tough to find in the open market, and they're only open to visits by appointment. The winery is located N of Calistoga, on Hwy 29 as it begins its journey over to the Alexander Valley, on the Eastern slopes of the Mayacamas mountains.

Mark Lipton

I've hardly ever had the stuff. Not a common variety over here. Can't really form an opinion.

Matilda

Funny you should say that. I can't remember where I read it--might have been Jancis--but someone wrote that zinfandel in the U.S. was treated much the way shiraz was in Australia: It could be made into truly superior wine, but with so much of it around, hardly anyone bothered.

To answer the question, the last zin I tasted that I thought worthwhile was Cosentino's "The Zin," which had some nice bright acidity to cut the jammy fruit.

To further qualify: It's part of my job to taste zinfandel, so I do, but I haven't actually had a glass of the stuff in six years or so. The last zin I really enjoyed was the famous cheapie "Three Thieves" from Joel Gott.

I used to like Zin alot, but then again, I used to like Barossa Shiraz alot. I just find Zin to over the top for my tastes these days. Like drinking raspberry jam. I do recall enjoying Ridge Geyserville back several years ago, however, but have not had it in a long time...

Norm

I find Zin to be a useful wine. I have many friends that aren't really into wine, but they seem to enjoy the Rosenblum Zins. There are also some meals that just scream for Zinfandel , BarBQ for one. The wide variety of styles really helps; Zins from Radio Coteau, Williams-Selyem, Carlisle, Linne Calodo can be very different from each other and while I love Ridge (a '91 Geyserville was one of my top ten wines from last year), there are times when I enjoy Turley.

For someone who loves high-acid reds, Zin (real Zin - the red stuff) might seem an odd choice. But, no, I do love it - every now and then. Zinfandel is so closely associated with California in my mind that I pretty much have to watch some kind of American flick while having it ... it just goes hand in hand.

One of the best Zins I ever recall having was a slightly unassuming one, certainly nothing "top end" or expensive - it was called La Primittiva and I had it in late '98 as I recall. Could never find it again after that for some reason. It had a mere 13% alc. content, lovely sumac/garnet saturation and a nice black-pepper/raisin nose that was most appetizing.

Our Zin selection in Ontario isn't usually that wide; for that reason I tend to buy a few bottles state-side when visiting family, etc.

[Jenise]

I chose the "Loved it", past tense, option which reflects my buying habits re zinfandel though it's actually a grape I like from time to time. Ridge, Rafanelli, Biale, Nalle...if the majority of zins were like these, I'd buy and drink them more often. But unfortunately, most aren't, and what's available to me locally are more the monster style. And when they're not deliberately so, even good guys like Rod Berglund (Joseph Swan) are fighting the increasingly hotter Sonoma climate and losing--his zins, once models of moderation and almost pinot-like finesse and delicacy (oh, Stellwagen!) are regularly popping out at 15% abv and up. And that loses my interest.

I still like some Zinfandel. The Ridge blends are always good and I have enjoyed very nice bottles of single vineyard Zins from Ravenswood and Cline. Rafanelli produces a style I like as well.

I can sum up my taste quite easily...If Parker loves the Zinfandel and scores it highly, chances are very good that I will dislike that Zinfandel.