Zinfandel
California’s signature red grape (genetically identical to Italian Primitivo + Croatian Crljenak Kaštelanski). Old-vine plots in Dry Creek and Lodi are foundational.
About Zinfandel
Zinfandel is California’s most editorially distinctive red grape variety — a variety with genuinely uncertain origins until DNA analysis in 2001-2008 confirmed it as identical to Croatian Crljenak Kaštelanski and Italian Primitivo. The grape arrived in California in the mid-19th century and has been cultivated continuously since, producing some of the world’s oldest active red-grape vineyards (100+ year old plots in Dry Creek Valley, Lodi, and elsewhere). The grape’s distinctive characteristic is uneven ripening within individual clusters — some berries reach full ripeness while others remain green or become raisinated, producing wines with both jammy fruit and structural complexity. Old-vine, dry-farmed Zinfandel from serious producers (Ridge Lytton Springs, Bedrock Heritage series, Carlisle, Quivira) produces wines that age 10-15+ years and demonstrate that Zinfandel can be a genuinely serious editorial category. The variety also appears in California field-blend bottlings alongside Carignane, Petite Sirah, and Mourvèdre — the historic California planting pattern.
Variety profile
Also known as
Editorial notes
Same grape as Italian Primitivo (confirmed by DNA 2001). Old-vine, dry-farmed Zinfandel from serious producers is editorially distinct from bulk-zone Zinfandel.