Print ArticleA Croatian grape variety, at one time represented by only a handful of vines in a few scattered Dalmatian vineyards, accounts for nearly 12 per cent of American wine sales each year?
This variety, known in Dalmatia as Crljenak Kaštelanski, probably migrated to Puglia, in the heel of Italy, sometime before the 1750s, where it gained renown as an early-ripening grape called Primitivo, which produced a robust (read: highly alcoholic) red wine. Originally, Primitivo was used to ´beef up´ some of the thinner (read: less alcoholic) wines produced in Tuscany, although it is now coming into its own as a single varietal wine.
But Crljenak Kaštelanski probably took a different route to the U.S. After the fall of the Venetian Empire in 1797, most of the Dalmatian coast came under control of the Hapsburg Empire, and some of the Crljenak Kaštelanski vines made their way to the Imperial nursery in Vienna. Some of these vines were apparently shipped to an American horticulturist sometime between1820 and 1829, probably with the Hungarian appellation tzinifándli. Ring any bells? What if I told you this same grape variety was originally sold commercially in the U.S. as Zenfendal or Zinfindel?
That´s right, one of America´s most popular wines, Zinfandel, is actually a Croatian variety, and originally had a completely different name. Zinfandel ranks third in the U.S., behind only Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon (and ahead of Merlot), in terms of tons of grapes crushed each year.
Since at least the 1960s scientists and wine drinkers have suspected a strong relationship between the Primitivo wines of Italy and America´s Zinfandel. In 1993 using DNA fingerprinting, Dr. Carole Meredith of the University of California, Davis, was finally able to confirm that the two grapes are identical.
But where did the Zinfandel/Primitivo grapes come from?
Enter Californian wine maker Mike Grgich, who was born Miljenko Grgić in 1928 in the Dalmatian town of Desne. As a native Croat and a vintner, his interest in and knowledge of wines led him to the firm conviction that the wine Americans call Zinfandel had originated in Croatia. With the help, again, of Dr. Meredith and a team from Zagreb University, they were able to confirm in 2002 that the Crljenak Kaštelanski ("Kaštela Red") grape variety found in the vineyard of Ivica Radunić in Kaštel Novi on the Dalmatian coast is identical to Californian Zinfandel.
It´s a wonder they found it at all: there were only nine Crljenak Kaštelanski vines mixed in with thousands of other vines in Radunić´s vineyard! Shortly after the initial identification, a few other vines of the grape (known locally as Pribidrag) were found in a vineyard in Omiš, bringing the number of known vines to a good baker´s dozen.
Since then, initiatives by Croatian wine makers and by Grgich and his "Zinfandel Advocates and Producers" organization have been working to promote the growth and bottling of Crljenak Kaštelanski in its native home. (Meredith and others now often refer to the grape as "Zinfandel-Primitivo-Kaštelanski" or ZPC for short.)
Because of its high sugar content, Zinfandel grapes were often used as table grapes early in their career in the U.S. When the vines made their way westward during the California gold rush, Zinfandel came into its own as a wine-making grape, and by the end of the 19th century, Zinfandel was the most widespread grape variety in California, renowned as a hearty (read: highly alcoholic) red wine.
The slightly sweet, blush version of Zinfandel that most Americans are familiar with didn´t appear until a fortunate wine-making accident in 1975; this accidental "white Zinfandel" currently accounts for nearly 10% of all wine sales in the U.S. and outsells red Zinfandel by a factor of 6:1 in the U.S.
Zinfandel vines age well; in fact, whereas vines of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot have to be replanted every few decades because of diminishing yields, Zinfandel vines are still considered "teething babies" at 35 years (according to vintner Paul Draper of California´s Ridge Vineyards). Fifty years is considered the minimum vine age for creating "classic" Zinfandel, and the few U.S. vines that are over a hundred years old are highly prized for the complex flavors of their grapes.
And a note on the name´s origin: no one has the foggiest idea where the name "Zinfandel" really comes from. Was it created to honor 18th century German botanist Dr. Zinn? Is it from the Italian word ´zingaro´ for gypsy? Or, is it, as Webster´s suggests, a corruption of the Hungarian tzinifándli (which is, itself, probably a corruption of the name of the Austrian white grape Zierfandler)? Yes? No? Who knows? But since Zinfandel wines can average about 14% alcohol content, by the time you finish your first glass, it might not matter any more!
For More Information:
www.zinfandel.org -- This is the on-line home of ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates and Producers) started by Mike Grgich. And if you are fanatical about Zinfandel, this is the only place for you. Not only can you find other Zin drinkers who wax rhapsodic about the wine´s qualities, you can also find an amazing list of events, restaurants, and wineries which feature Zinfandel wines.
Piljac, Jasenka. Zinfandel: A Croatian-American Wine Story. This book, written by one of the scientific investigators involved in the search for the original Zinfandel is available used at www.amazon.com (for $75!).
www.crozinfandel.com -- Or, try contacting Dr. Piljac directly for a copy of her book (price: $30). This website gives her address as: Dr. Jasenka Piljac, Department of Molecular Biology, Institute 'Ruđer Bošković', Bijenička c. 54, PO Box 180,10002 Zagreb, Croatia. Phone: +385 1 456-0987. E-mail: jpiljac@irb.hr.
This variety, known in Dalmatia as Crljenak Kaštelanski, probably migrated to Puglia, in the heel of Italy, sometime before the 1750s, where it gained renown as an early-ripening grape called Primitivo, which produced a robust (read: highly alcoholic) red wine. Originally, Primitivo was used to ´beef up´ some of the thinner (read: less alcoholic) wines produced in Tuscany, although it is now coming into its own as a single varietal wine.
But Crljenak Kaštelanski probably took a different route to the U.S. After the fall of the Venetian Empire in 1797, most of the Dalmatian coast came under control of the Hapsburg Empire, and some of the Crljenak Kaštelanski vines made their way to the Imperial nursery in Vienna. Some of these vines were apparently shipped to an American horticulturist sometime between1820 and 1829, probably with the Hungarian appellation tzinifándli. Ring any bells? What if I told you this same grape variety was originally sold commercially in the U.S. as Zenfendal or Zinfindel?
That´s right, one of America´s most popular wines, Zinfandel, is actually a Croatian variety, and originally had a completely different name. Zinfandel ranks third in the U.S., behind only Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon (and ahead of Merlot), in terms of tons of grapes crushed each year.
Since at least the 1960s scientists and wine drinkers have suspected a strong relationship between the Primitivo wines of Italy and America´s Zinfandel. In 1993 using DNA fingerprinting, Dr. Carole Meredith of the University of California, Davis, was finally able to confirm that the two grapes are identical.
But where did the Zinfandel/Primitivo grapes come from?
Enter Californian wine maker Mike Grgich, who was born Miljenko Grgić in 1928 in the Dalmatian town of Desne. As a native Croat and a vintner, his interest in and knowledge of wines led him to the firm conviction that the wine Americans call Zinfandel had originated in Croatia. With the help, again, of Dr. Meredith and a team from Zagreb University, they were able to confirm in 2002 that the Crljenak Kaštelanski ("Kaštela Red") grape variety found in the vineyard of Ivica Radunić in Kaštel Novi on the Dalmatian coast is identical to Californian Zinfandel.
It´s a wonder they found it at all: there were only nine Crljenak Kaštelanski vines mixed in with thousands of other vines in Radunić´s vineyard! Shortly after the initial identification, a few other vines of the grape (known locally as Pribidrag) were found in a vineyard in Omiš, bringing the number of known vines to a good baker´s dozen.
Since then, initiatives by Croatian wine makers and by Grgich and his "Zinfandel Advocates and Producers" organization have been working to promote the growth and bottling of Crljenak Kaštelanski in its native home. (Meredith and others now often refer to the grape as "Zinfandel-Primitivo-Kaštelanski" or ZPC for short.)
Because of its high sugar content, Zinfandel grapes were often used as table grapes early in their career in the U.S. When the vines made their way westward during the California gold rush, Zinfandel came into its own as a wine-making grape, and by the end of the 19th century, Zinfandel was the most widespread grape variety in California, renowned as a hearty (read: highly alcoholic) red wine.
The slightly sweet, blush version of Zinfandel that most Americans are familiar with didn´t appear until a fortunate wine-making accident in 1975; this accidental "white Zinfandel" currently accounts for nearly 10% of all wine sales in the U.S. and outsells red Zinfandel by a factor of 6:1 in the U.S.
Zinfandel vines age well; in fact, whereas vines of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot have to be replanted every few decades because of diminishing yields, Zinfandel vines are still considered "teething babies" at 35 years (according to vintner Paul Draper of California´s Ridge Vineyards). Fifty years is considered the minimum vine age for creating "classic" Zinfandel, and the few U.S. vines that are over a hundred years old are highly prized for the complex flavors of their grapes.
And a note on the name´s origin: no one has the foggiest idea where the name "Zinfandel" really comes from. Was it created to honor 18th century German botanist Dr. Zinn? Is it from the Italian word ´zingaro´ for gypsy? Or, is it, as Webster´s suggests, a corruption of the Hungarian tzinifándli (which is, itself, probably a corruption of the name of the Austrian white grape Zierfandler)? Yes? No? Who knows? But since Zinfandel wines can average about 14% alcohol content, by the time you finish your first glass, it might not matter any more!
For More Information:
www.zinfandel.org -- This is the on-line home of ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates and Producers) started by Mike Grgich. And if you are fanatical about Zinfandel, this is the only place for you. Not only can you find other Zin drinkers who wax rhapsodic about the wine´s qualities, you can also find an amazing list of events, restaurants, and wineries which feature Zinfandel wines.
Piljac, Jasenka. Zinfandel: A Croatian-American Wine Story. This book, written by one of the scientific investigators involved in the search for the original Zinfandel is available used at www.amazon.com (for $75!).
www.crozinfandel.com -- Or, try contacting Dr. Piljac directly for a copy of her book (price: $30). This website gives her address as: Dr. Jasenka Piljac, Department of Molecular Biology, Institute 'Ruđer Bošković', Bijenička c. 54, PO Box 180,10002 Zagreb, Croatia. Phone: +385 1 456-0987. E-mail: jpiljac@irb.hr.
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