California
February 2007
by Rutha Astravas
Viva Zinfandel!
January 24-27, 2007 marked the 16th annual ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates and Producers) festival in San Francisco. This group is made up of over 300+ producers and around 5,000 American and international advocates who seek to advance public knowledge of and appreciation for American Zinfandel and its unique place in American culture and history.
I attended the Saturday morning trade and media walk-about tasting which featured an incredible 270 wineries showing new and older releases plus some barrel samples. Wafts of dark fruit welcomed everyone even before collecting our programs, glasses, and baguettes at the Bay-side pavilions. Excited crowds of devotees lined up hours before the afternoon public tasting and were treated to mariachi singers.
Although ZAP is a main Californian wine event, the tasting is fun and laid-back: it's the first time I saw trade people wearing flashing badges, silly hats, or distributing tattoos or bumper stickers with sayings such as Ravenswood's 'No wimpy wines'. But don't be mistaken: people know what they are looking for and all wineries happily take time to talk about their products and cultivate loyal clients, particularly when a large proportion of zins sell for US$ 35-40.
With so much choice (every California appellation, small and famous producers alike, entry-level through to $100 old vine bottles, late harvests, zin 'ports' and sparkling reds), I aimed to taste mid-to-high samples as well as full ranges of pre-eminent wineries. My conclusion: there is no average zin. Everyone could find something enjoyable: $10-15 house wines elegant, restrained, complex old-world style wines, 14-16% alcohol fruit bombs, intense and tannic monsters for cellaring, and rich, chocolate-loving, dessert wines.
Good news: if you can't travel to the West Coast this year, the California Wine Fair is coming to Ottawa and Montreal this April where you can try many zinfandels, in addition to other varietals California is well-known for.
-Rutha Astravas
