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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Wine Club Insider coming at you from on the road this week!

Yup… actually had to go out of town to do some work for a living… I pride myself on being one of the busiest unemployed people I know, but every once in a while, I have to do something at least mildly productive, even if just to keep my wife happy.

With that in mind, I had to make the trip to Bend, Or. to teach a small clinic. I drove down Sunday, and it was an awesome day… mid 80s (warmest day this year around here!), sunny… perfect! By the looks of it, the wine industry isn’t suffering quite as mush as the rest of us in these troubled times… people will always keep sipping their vino, I guess. It was great to see all of the new wineries dotting the Columbia River and Oregon hillsides as I made the trip. I’m planning in hitting a few of them on the way home – strictly for educational purposes, of course!

On a side note, the unsettled weather seems to be following me; the drive down was perfect, it was 86 yesterday, and today, after giving it a chance to catch up, it’s 66 and raining – in the high desert. Oh well… just seems to be my luck this spring. I did get a great run in this morning before the clouds rolled in, though, so no worries!

The folks I’m staying with in Bend are also foodie/winos, so we manage to always find something to drink, eat and chat about, even if it’s just a simple salad, watermelon and cheese like we had Sunday night, accompanied by a very pleasant surprise that I dragged out of my cellar and brought along for the ride…

We opened a 2002 A Mano Puglia, which is made from 100% Primitivo (Basically Zinfandel, or at least modern Zin’s grandfather). It was huge! Rich, full, but not over done. Yup… Zin is my current favorite red grape… it’s been working toward it for a year, and over the past 3 or 4 months, I don’t think I’ve had a bad Zin!

Last night, friends came over for lasagna, salad and bread, and brought, of all things, a Ravenswood Zin. A great coincidence! The Ravenswood was excellent, as usual, but lacked some of the fruit of the A Mano, to my mind. Still a terrific wine, though.

Tonight, I’m facing off against one of the chefs here in town in an Iron Chef-meets-Chopped contest, with pride and a good bottle on the line… I’ll let you know how it goes on Thursday!

(I think I have an edge, because I also brought the fabulous 2003 Borra “Fusion,” the Syrah-Cab Sauv-Merlot-Zin blend from from Lodi for the entree, and with my dessert, I’m serving one of the last 6 remaining bottles of Renaissance 1982 Late Harvest Sauv Blanc in a 750… it’s the color of dark caramel, and will carry the evening for me, I’m sure, no matter what I make!) Almost a shame to have to throw in work in the middle of all of it, but it keeps me in vino, laptops and mountain bikes, so it’s all good!

Have a great week!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out.

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