Prompted by another thread I was checking Cellar Tracker to see how many Zinfandel/Zinfandel-based wines I drank in 2021. I was shocked to find it was a very small percentage of my overall consumption in 2021, a marked change from 2020 (Zin was close to 20% in 2020).
So by percentage of overall consumption, this is 2021 so far - the top 10
Riesling 19%
Pinot Noir 12% (includes many Champagnes/Sparklers)
Chardonnay 12% (this one really surprised me, but it also includes a bunch of Champagnes/Sparklers)
Syrah 6%
“Red Blend” 5% (this includes a wine range of things - from Italian inspired blends to some Loire style blends, etc.)
Zinfandel 5%
Red Rhone Blend 5%
Mourvedre 4%
Cabernet Sauvignon 3%
Gamay 3%
Nebbiolo 3%
That leaves about 25% of my consumption that covers a wine range of wines. Overall I have had 51 different types of wines so far this year.
Interesting- a CT data dive that we hadn’t covered yet!
Fun to look at this, and surprising to me, though I did go through a big white wine phase this year that lasted all spring and summer.
I usually do a year-end look at this, but since you’re asking now - the year so far:
Red RhĂ´ne Blend 15.3
Sangiovese 14.4
Red Bordeaux Blend 13.9
Syrah 7.4
Pinot Noir 6.9
Chardonnay 5
Grenache 3.5
Mencia 3
Nebbiolo 3
Red Blend 3
(Zin is 11th at 2.5 and Riesling tied for 12th at 2)
Leaving 24.6% after the top 10, for the remaining wide range. 37 total “Master Varieties.” I have not logged the samples I got for NewbiePalooza, though, as they didn’t come from my cellar (nor any others that didn’t come from my cellar). Those would bump up the number of total varieties/blends, since I don’t otherwise have any Saperavi, Plavac Mali, Limnio, etc.
I grouped by “master variety” rather than by “variety.” “Variety” would, for example, cut sangiovese into three - sangiovese blend, sangiovese, and neilluccio - each less than half of the “sangiovese” amount listed by master variety, and would kick my total number of varieties up, of course.
Edited to add - I see that CT classifies the 2007 Bedrock Lorenzo’s I drank last month, e.g., as a “Red Blend” rather than a “zin.” Zin would be tied with grenache on my list if two zin heavy “red blends” I drank this year were re-classified as zins.
And if I don’t check consumption from my personal cellar, but just all the stuff I’ve drunk in 2021, I’m now at 147 different types (134 different varietal wines, after removing the 13 blends or non-wines).
46 CT-designated “master varieties” for us in 2021.
Top 10:
Tempranillo 12% (we found some red and rose bargains that turned into regular drinkers for us…didn’t expect this to be #1 by so much, though)
Grenache 9% (my wife’s favorite)
Syrah 9%
Sangiovese 7% (almost entirely Il Poggione (Proprietá Franceschi) Brancato rose that I found a great deal on)
Albariño 7% (some from a couple of local makers, some inexpensive bottles from a local shop)
Red Bordeaux Blend 5%
Red Blend 5%
Red Rhone Blend 5%
Pinot Noir 4%
Chardonnay 4%
Pinot Noir 20%
Sangiovese 12% (been on a Chianti kick this year)
Chardonnay 11%
Nebbiolo 7%
Riesling 6%
Syrah 4%
Barbera 4%
Cabernet Franc 4%
Granted these are cellared wines, not the normal day drinkers, so what I’m drinking is a little different. Much more riesling, gruner, other tank fermented whites and roses, heck we even went through case of elbling this year.
The unaccounted for balance from the list below were a smattering of IT whites, red Bordeaux, WA Bdx-style, Sauternes, CA/WA desert wines
38% WA syrah
15% CA zin
8% Bordeaux blanc (a little unusual/surprising)
5% Unusual IT reds
5% red Burgundy
5% southern Rhone
5% Champagne
4% CA syrah
3% CA pinot
3% CA white Rhone-style
3% WA grenache
Nebbiolo 16.4%
Pinot noir 13.2% (mostly German and a few French)
Riesling 11.1%
Fruliano/Sauvignonasse 5.8% (mostly Slovenian and a few Friulian)
Plavac Mali 3.7%
Gamay/Sangiovese/Syrah 3.2% (each)
Dolcetto/Ribolla Gialla/Xinomavro 2.1% (each)
Interesting. I’ve got a wide spread, with 52 total varieties so far - that’s more than 1 per week. I’m also surprised that Sangiovese, Tempranillo, and Cabernet Franc don’t make my top 15, although I suspect some of the “red blend” is Rioja.
I only started logging bottles consumed on CT in the middle of 2021, so this is only about 6 most worth of data. And I typically don’t enter daily drinkers, just bottles from “the collection”. But I should change that: New Years Resolution 2022!
Chardonnay 22%
Nebbiolo 10%
Pinot Noir 10%
Cab Sauv 8% (Old Napa Cabs)
Champagne Blend 6%
Red Bdx Blend 6%
Riesling 4%
Sauv Blanc 4%
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