Wine Review: Zinfandel brings interesting history to modern day

Every human endeavor has some mystery about it, and the wine industry is no different. For centuries it was the zinfandel, a very hardy variety of red grape that grew prolifically in California but whose history and parentage was totally unknown.

The grape variety's origin was at first believed to have been brought to California by the early Hispanic settlers from Mexico. At one point, zinfandel was considered the only example of the vitis vinifera, the classical wine grape variety of Europe, in America. Since most European wine grapes quickly succumbed to native insects, it was touted as an all-American vinifera variety.

It was just a few years ago that modern science put all the questions to rest. The variety was proven to be a clone of the plavac mali, a well-known Croatian grape that had been crossbred. The rest is history.

Bob Trinchero of Sutter Home Family Vineyards produced a sweet version of the variety that swept the country. It almost instantly became the college dorm favorite, replacing chianti. Word of the new wine spread rapidly, and it became a national favorite almost overnight. Soon, many of the other California wineries were producing their copies of the Sutter Home masterpiece.

The sages say that here is a reason for everything, and the sweet zinfandel proved them correct, as did economics. Customers became interested in sweet wines and the sweet wine was bringing customers into their stores.

Trinchero’s little experiment created an opening for the zinfandel, a variety that had formerly been the grape of choice for home winemaking during the Prohibition era when cases of the variety were shipped all over the country. Some of the home winemakers were making a dry zinfandel wine that was proving to be popular, too. With the end of Prohibition in 1933, the vintners replanted many of the grapes that were formerly popular and left the zinfandel to be made into cheap red wine that was just perfect for the formerly wine starved public. After World War II, our GI’s had been exposed to the dry wines of Europe, and the decreasing sales of sweet wines showed that.

It took a number of years until the zinfandel, now being made as a dry wine by expert vintners, found its way back into the public eye. I recently had an opportunity to sample two zinfandel wines that were made in the classical, dry style.

The Federalist 2021 Zinfandel ($22)
This wine displays one of the most inviting aromas of any zinfandel that I have recently sampled. This is a wine that explores the beauties and possibilities of the zinfandel grape to its fullest. Flavorful and rich, this medium-bodied zinfandel exhibits black cherry, spice and vanilla oak flavors and aromas that finish with delightful peppery notes. Those continue to dance on the palate for a long time. For those unfamiliar with the zinfandel grape, this wine would be the equivalent to a college course. To those familiar with the zinfandel and all of its possibilities, this wine would be a treat.

Sutter Home Founder's Selection 2019 Zinfandel ($20)
It would be unfair of me not to include the founder of the feast, Sutter Home. This version of the zinfandel displays huge amounts of blackberry, cranberry, black cherry and apricot all right up front. Zinfandel, which has become a favorite of the backyard barbecue gastronome, goes with almost any food that can be grilled, as well as spicy Mexican, Thai, Indian (both Asiatic and American) and Cajun favorites. This is a very interesting and delightful drink from a man and a vineyard who took a wine that was a beggar and transformed it into a prince.

Wine columnist Bennet Bodenstein can be reached at frojhe1@att.net.