It’s funny, after just finishing Zinfandel: A History of a Grape it made me reflect on its rollercoaster ride. It seems to be squarely out of fashion and popularity right now (perhaps edging back slightly - I see hints). But this is nothing new; it has tossed and turned like this many times through history. From memory (two weeks after reading book), it was in vogue in mid- to later parts of 70’s and 80’s, then fell out again, only to come back big and jammy in the 90’s and now to be out again. And before that it also showed hints of going in and out. Initially mostly out - a table grape not well respected for winemaking - but rising in reputation after prohibition.
From a personal perspective, I bought Turning Leaf and Fetzer back in the days in Sweden with a nascent wine interest, as they were kind of the only Zins one could get. For us at the time, they seemed like high end, but I think that might have been the novelty perspective of American wine.
I’ve always enjoyed Zin, and consider it a true American classic. But there was a period where I didn’t pursue it much, so I have a huge gap in my relationship with it.
So, to my question:
I know grapes go through these popularity cycles, but it seems like Zin goes through them more frequently and with higher frequency. Why is that? Is it simply because it’s been here the longest and the cycles of PN, Cab etc haven’t shown yet? Is it because it is a Californian OG and we treat our own kids harsher than the neighbors? Has Cab ever been through a lower demand cycle? And if so, why not - why Zin and not Cab?
Consider that there are still a lot of people whose response to “How about zinfandel” is “The red kind or the white kind?” There is too little appreciation of the better quality zins. I suspect that the fluctuation is the result of periodic fascination with another grape (e.g., Malbec) that causes people who were drinking cheap factory zin to go out and try something else.
Consider that there are still a lot of people whose response to “How about zinfandel” is “The red kind or the white kind?” There is too little appreciation of the better quality zins. I suspect that the fluctuation is the result of periodic fascination with another grape (e.g., Malbec) that causes people who were drinking cheap factory zin to go out and try something else.
There just is not a lot of consumers willing to pay $30 plus for a Zin. I think Seghesio’s base bottle is one of the better transitions for people to see that Zin can be good.
Other examples of boom/bust: There was a steep drop in Merlot sales pre- and post-“Sideways”. Carneros was the center of Pinot until it wasn’t. Australian Shiraz.
I’d agree with Jay that 99% (don’t trust that number) of zin sold isn’t of the style loved by WB (myself included).
And as mentioned there are too many people making “Factory Zins”. Good call on Seghesio, their Sonoma County Zin was a regular on our table for years. The $15 price point was sweet. Thus the price point is the sticking point as it is with the public with most wines. $25+ is luxury wine to the averge consumer where in my cellar it’s a starting point. My rule of thumb, and of course there are exceptions, is good wine isn’t cheap and cheap wine isn’t good. The majority of Zinfandel at the market is over-ripe, flabby and indistinguishable from one winery to the next. It takes that $25-$45 price point to find producers that create something with character and structure and even then you find over-ripe flabby wines. It’s tough.
I really enjoyed reading that book as well. One of its takes was that Zinfandel has always been far more popular here in CA, than elsewhere. And that it has generally never been considered a serious grape.
Personally, I’ve always enjoyed the occasional bottle, but these days the emphasis is going to be occasional. Bought way too much Zin over the last 10 years that I’m now unloading on a friend who still enjoys it on a more regular basis. Seghesio is a good example of the style I never enjoyed, way too thick and overdone. Martinelli is another that I never enjoyed at the other end of the price spectrum.
Stylistic shifts often lead to shifts in consumer acceptance/enthusiasm. Zin has been a bit of a shapeshifter over the years, with the white zin boom, the rise of the goopy high alcohol monsters, and now a more varied field with some wonderfully balanced wines. That shifting can cause confusion, and affect sales.
It seams to me that grape/wine style popularity is mostly driven by “who yells the loudest”. I have always liked fruit forward wines like zin but appreciate the fact that there are many who do not. And that is okay.
I think that’s largely true. And keep in mind, that any measure of the popularity of this or that grape in the USA has been done within the context of a market that was growing larger each year. It’s not like there was a static market in which the popularity of certain grapes would ebb and flow. At one time there was a lot of Chenin Blanc and Barbera planted. Italian Swiss Colony and others would blend lots of grapes together. But then the market became a little larger and a little more sophisticated and people wanted to drink Chardonnay. And then the market became larger yet and other types of Chardonnay became popular. But KJ is still selling a lot of its original style.
Same with Zin. White Zin became popular in the 1970s along with Gallo’s wine coolers. Then the Paris tasting came along and people gradually became more interested in wine in general, and that expanded the universe of grapes used. So I’m not sure that there really was so much of a rollercoaster.
I love Zinfandel and mixed blacks, and I’m grateful that only a few of us think of fine examples as grand cru quality. There may be a lot of old-vine vineyards, but not nearly enough to accommodate the wine drinking world if zin became particularly trendy. For anybody who has dabbled in Burgundy, $50 grand crus are a ridiculous bargain.
Is the popularity of zin really cyclical? Seems pretty steady to me. The prices of quality zin never seem to dip. Or is it the low end of zin that cycles up and down? Does the number of acres planted to zin go up and down. It would be interesting to see some kind of actual statistics on sales, prices, or acres.
Phil Jones
I think of zinfandel as kind of a one-trick pony. The best of them manage to be balanced (Carlisle, Scherrer), but they lack the sophistication of other grapes, and end up still being heavy. Zinfandel seems to excel when it is blended with other grapes - Ridge Geyserville and Lytton Springs are great examples. Those can be very interesting with age.
Ditto Nate and Michael. At my house, my 600-bottle cellar is roughly 90% Zinfandel (mainly Bedrock and Carlisle). About 9% is Petit Sirah, and 1% is other stuff. Zinfandel does not go out of style at my house.
Phil Jones