In Europe, the wine makers have had a good thousand years or so to figure out which grapes grow best in which locations. In America, we’re still figuring that out. There’s been some noteworthy progress on this front, especially given our relatively late start. There’s Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa, there’s Pinot Noir in Willamette, and, there’s Zinfandel in Dry Creek.

Zinfandel is grown all over the state of California, however, it seems the best Zin comes from the Dry Creek Valley. Dry Creek Valley is an American Viticulture Area (AVA), located just west of the northern end of Napa Valley, in Sonoma County, California.

What makes this valley the chosen site for Zinfandel? The short answer is climate and geography.

All the vines in the AVA are clustered around the creek and the hillside slopes that slope down to the creek. The gentle slopes help to maximize the sunlight to the vines. The soil allows rapid drainage—the soil even has a name: Dry Creek Conglomerate—because it’s composed of loose gravel.

When the Italian immigrants moved here in the 1870’s they selected the valley’s hillsides for the Zinfandel grape. The grapes tight bunches and thin skins lend to rot if the moisture it too high. That was great for Dry Creek because the area received little rain and the rain that did come moved through the loose soils quickly. Zinfandel is a very vigorous vine and will produce excess fruit and foliage if there is significant rainfall. Dry Creek was a great fit for this because of its low rainfall.

Finally, Zinfandel ripens relatively early than other grapes. This is key in Dry Creek because the fall storms come from the Pacific every year. Zin ripens early enough that the grapes have time to be picked before the storms come through.

It seems Dry Creek was made for the Zinfandel grape. And the proof is in the bottle. Dry Creek Zinfandels from producers like Rafanelli, Lytton Springs and Dry Creek Vineyard are complex, lean, powerful and rich on the nose and palette. A well-made Dry Creek Zin will banish any thoughts and conceptions you may have about the grapes capacity to produce quality wine.

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No other name evokes American wine in the way that Napa does. The consistently excellent quality of the wines coming out of the Napa Valley in California has earned the region an amazing brand. In most instances, a famous wine region is known for producing a single grape or style of wine; think Cabernet blends from Bordeaux or Pinot Noir from Willamette. While Napa certainly has cemented its reputation with Cabernet Sauvignon, the region is also known for excellent Merlot, Chardonnay and Zinfandel, amongst others. Basically anything that has Napa on the label will be able to sell for a higher price than if it was produced elsewhere. This is truly a triumph of wine making skill and excellent geographic site selection

Vineyards popped up in the Napa Valley almost as soon as settlers reached the area in the 1800’s with the first established in 1858. The wine industry in Napa moved along slowly from there, garnering a little attention here and there. Then came the double-whammy of Phylloxera and Prohibition. Phylloxera knocked out the vines and Prohibition denigrated wine production to sacramental purposes only. After Prohibition wine production picked up again and fine wine became the focus of some producers. The seminal moment came at the Judgment of Paris in 1976 when a Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa beat the best of Bordeaux. This led to renewed interest in Napa and California in general and began the landslide of activity that has culminated in the industry we know today.

Napa is further broken down into 15 sub AVAs, which are defined by unique microclimate and geographic differences. The geography of Napa leads to several climatic differences within the valley. The southern end of the valley abuts the San Pablo Bay, which brings cooler air in. The northern half of the valley is usually much warmer. Two of the best known are: Rutherford and St. Helena.

Rutherford lies just north of Oakville and is home to the famous Rutherford Bench a stretch of low-vigor soil composed of well-drained volcanic and maritime sediments. The star of the Rutherford Bench is Cabernet Sauvignon. This small appellation is home to some of the best producers in Napa, and some of the most famous wines in California, a sample list: Caymus, ZD, Livingston, Beaulieu, Quintessa, Frogs Leap and Cakebread.

St. Helena is home to some of the most sought after Cabernet produced in Napa. The AVA is the warmest in the entire valley and the vines are able to climb the steep valley walls and soak in the rays. The Grace Family and Colgin Herb Lamb wineries, based in St. Helena, have developed a near cult-like following for their mailing list only Cabernet Sauvignon. The bottles sell for hundreds, even thousands of dollars. Others in the AVA are Revana, Nickel and Nickel and Chase Family; and while Cabernet is big here, excellent Zinfandel is also produced.

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The Central Valley of California has a bad rep among wine consumers. The Central Valley is monstrous in size and has the dubious distinction of being home to the huge producers of inexpensive box and jug wines that make up a sizeable chunk of the output of California. And while there is no denying the bulk nature of wine in the Central Valley, there are some pockets of fine wine production in this goliath of wine regions. Most notable are two areas in the northeast of the Valley: Lodi and the Sierra Foothills.

The Sierra Foothills must have been named by a seriously un-creative bureaucrat, but don’t let the obvious nature of it’s name fool you; this region is capable of producing some very complex wines. The eponymous mountains of the Sierra Foothills area provide this large AVA (American Viticultural Area) with a necessary cooling effect, which tempers the heat of central California. The vines were introduced to the area with the flood of humanity that ensued during the gold rush of the 1850’s. The Sierra Foothills is compromised of several sub AVAs including: Fiddletown, Shenedoah Valley and El Dorado.

Zinfandel has found a foothold here and produces wines that have become a style unto their own. The Zin production in the area is centered around Amador County and the style is generally called Amador Zin. The wines are unmistakable, huge alcohol content—16% isn’t abnormal—with a rich body and deep tannins. The best examples have the acidity and fruit to balance out the monstrous body and alcohol of these wines. Amador Zin is certainly an acquired taste, you have to be ready for these wines, but they can be quite enjoyable and reasonably priced for the quality.

Outside of Zin, Cabernet Sauvignon is the most planted grape in the Sierra Foothills region. Cab is grown all around the region, but El Dorado is home to a good portion of the vines. The acidic magma soils and cooling mountain breezes bring out a strong, but balanced Cab. Some Syrah is also planted and the grape generally does well in the region.

The Lodi area is located between the Sierra Foothills to the east and the rest of the Central Valley to the west. The area has a Mediterranean climate regulated by the mountains and the northern location in the valley. Zinfandel is the main product of Lodi and the area benefits from huge swaths of old Zin vines that have been producing for decades. The Lodi style of Zin isn’t quite as big as Amador Zin and could be though of as halfway between the more restrained Dry Creek Zin and the over-the-top style of Amador Zin.

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Did everyone see the movie Julie and Julia? If not I’d highly recommend it! Since most Wine lovers are also Foodies I’m sure you’ll like the movie. It’s about Life and Food. After seeing the movie I was inspired to cook a little more so I picked up Julia’s cookbook: Mastering the Art of French Cooking. If you have the book turn to page 287 and you’ll find her Coq au Vin recipe. She uses half a bottle of red wine in the recipie. You could also do white, but the classic recipe calls for red. I’d recommend any dry red wine. Just make sure the wine you cook with you also serve on the table. Julia’s specifically recommended a Zinfandel, Macon or Chianti. Her Coq au Vin recipie can be found on ABC and a zillion other sites. For those that don’t want to open a new window  I’ve pasted the recipie below:

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Wine Club Insider back!

Here’s to hoping that everyone had a great day today! I managed to get “pleasantly lost” while snow shoeing tonight (on a peninsula, when you can see the NorthStar you’re not really lost) but finished it off with an entire baked fresh crab, some sauteed prawns and potatoes, with the rest of the V. Sattui Zin I started the other night. Heaven!

Before we get back to our discovery of the wines of the world, I’d love to talk about what everybody drinks…

Worldwide, red wine is the most popular, and of the reds Merlot is numero uno around the globe, though Cab Sauv is right there. The two actually go back and forth. In California, Zin is number 2 behind Cab Sauv, and growing every year.

In the white wine category, Chardonnay is the biggest seller worldwide, though it loses to Sauv Blanc in several key battle ground states… France and New Zealand to name a couple.

What do you drink? Around our place, we have a completely eclectic wine schedule… overall, I’d have to say that in the still wine category, blends are number one, but it goes in phases… right now, I’m drinking more Zins than anything else, and also quite a number of Rieslings and Auslaces… I know, I know!

Now, taking all wines into consideration, port and dessert wines take the title hands down! Port is my favorite wine, though some folks have a hard time considering it in the same sentence as Cabs or Chards.

Of all countries, believe it or not, the Vatican (!) is number one, with Andorra a close second. France (surprise, surprise) is the highest of the major countries. The US is 59th, following such notables as Greenland, Falkland Islands, Bulgaria and Bermuda.

In terms of acreage, Spain is number one, and the US is number 5. So, where does all the wine we grow go? I’m not sure, but at least a few of us are doing our best to move us up in the per capita rankings!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out!

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Got a chance to get out and do a great five hour long snowshoe trip up Boulder Basin today with a couple of friends. There was over 10 feet of snow at the top of the peak as we stopped for a quick Jet Boil meal. On one of our real mountain climbs last summer, we took wine up in Nalgene bottles for dinner, but I forgot today, so I had to wait until I got home… there’s not much better than a nice glass of wine after a great day outside in the snow!

Well, to business…

We’ve talked about dozens of wine clubs, several different wines and wineries, but we haven’t really taken much time to talk about the specific wine varietals and grapes that make up our favorite beverage!

For the next few days, I’d love to chat a bit about some specific grapes, and the wines made from them, but today, just some basic grape info…

All red wine is made from red grapes (which can be black or purple as well). White wines can also be made from red wine grapes, though there are plenty of good white grapes to choose from.

In all, there are more than 400(!) varieties of wine grapes grown around the world. Who knew? Yup… I bet if I polled 100 people, the majority couldn’t name twenty… A couple of years ago, I probably couldn’t have, though I’m getting better.

One good site to look at for info on the various “cultivars” (the correct name, though “varietals” has taken on such everyday familiarity that it’s unlikely to change anytime soon) is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_grape_varieties#Red_grapes

Now, the Bordeaux grapes that everyone has heard about are Merlot (the number one red grape in France, and likely the number one red grape world wide by the end of the year, no matter what “Sideways” says), Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot, Malbec and Carmenere. Almost all Bordeaux wines are blends of these six grapes, usually with Merlot or Cab Sauv as the majority. There are none that I could find that use all six, though several used four.

There are also several popular “New World” grapes, such as Zinfandel, which is also named “Primitivo,” Syrah (or Shiraz, if you’re from Down Under), Petite Sirah, which isn’t related to Syrah, Sangiovese and Temperanillo, big Mediterranean grapes (ever hear of Chianti or Rioja?)

On top of that, we’ve got to look at the labels, and the (sometimes silly!) laws and rules that govern our passion!

Okay… we’re off and running! I’ll see you tomorrow!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out.

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Last night, four of us went to a surprise birthday party for a friend at the wonderful Coeur d’ Alene Resort, one of the world’s greatest hotels: www.cdaresort.com. The party was held in a private room off of Beverley’s, the exquisite fine dining room on the resort’s 7th floor that overlooks beautiful Lake Coeur d’ Alene. As an aside, Beverley’s has one of the world’s greatest wine cellars and wine lists, with over 2000 labels in one of the most beautiful displays I have ever seen.

At the party, another of the guests started waxing poetic about a small(ish) winery in Paso Robles, California named Four Vines Winery, or “4V.” They can be found at www.fourvines.com, and their website is as eclectic and interesting as their wines!

Started by Christian Tietje, who quickly partnered with Susan A Mahler (“SAM”), they started out to create a great old vine Zinfandel winery. Well, not only did they succeed, they also managed to create an amazing no oak Chardonnay, named “Naked.”

They were producing 14,000 cases, but were getting swamped by the work load, so they invited friend and financier Bill Grant to join them. A couple of years later, bingo, they were at 40,000 cases, and were creating a “cult,” not only because of their wines, but because of the whole attitude and image of their winery: edgy, eclectic (I know, I know… I said that already, but it’s true!) and irreverent.

Most importantly, their wines are great!

Besides their Chard, they over five Zins, named “The Biker,” “The Maverick,” “The Sophisticate,” a wine club member’s only Zin from Dusi Vienyard, and a Zin Cuvee.

They do also offer a nice wine club, called “Incident,” which sends out three shipments of their wines each year. When you sign up, you commit to a one year term (three shipments) but that doesn’t look like a struggle!

They also offer two killer Syrah’s, and this is only under the “normal” part of their list! They also have a section entitled “Freak Show,” where they have such things as a inky, black Petite Sirah (not related to the regular Syrah, BTW… it is a completely separate varietal!), a Temperanillo blend, and two unusual blends named “Anarchy” and “The Peasant,” which contain such interesting pairings as Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre and even Counnoise!

To top it off, they get my vote because they also make two different ports – a Zin port and a Syrah port! Ahhh… my kind of place!

I can’t wait to visit on my next trip to central California! It looks like a great place to spend an hour or six!

Cheers!

Wine Club Insider out!

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