The Tasting Panel magazine

The Sommelier's Approach to APPRECIATING THIS CALIFORNIA VARIETAL'S CLASSIC TERROIR by Randy Caparoso Y ou don't need fl owers in your hair, just an enthusiasm for a wine grape. Each year for the past 20 years, some 7,000 to 8,000 Zinfandel lovers have fl ocked to San Francisco for Zinfandel Advocates & Producers' Grand Tastings. Clearly, if there is one grape that per- sonifi es vinous love and "power to the people," Zinfandel is it. At the ZAP Grand Tasting taking place on January 28, 2012, I will be leading a discussion entitled "Top Sommeliers Choices," involving a panel of fi ve of the Bay Area's leading som- meliers. There are wine geeks and there are sommeliers—pretty much one and the same, except for the fact that sommeliers make their living out of being geeks. And there is almost nothing a sommelier likes more in a wine than a strong sense of terroir. What is terroir, and why should it matter to a Zinfandel-lover? From a sommelier's perspective, expression of terroir is just as important as varietal character in a good Zinfandel because it helps us appreciate diversity rather than sameness. Yes, it is true: terroir is one of those wine qualities that most people, even many wine professionals and so-called experts, have trouble distinguishing in wines; and so the most convenient thing for many of them to do is to deny that it matters—or that it even exits. This especially true when it comes to Zinfandel, which often tastes so strongly of the grape that qualities derived from geographic origins become, well, neither here nor there. But is this being fair to the grape? For many of us in the restaurant trade, Zinfandel is as noble as Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir or any other variety of Vitis vinifera. It makes unique and terrifi c-tasting wines—and lord knows, somme- liers are into "unique" and "terrifi c" (hence the presence on our wine lists of wines from regions 64 / the tasting panel / january/february 2012 as far fl ung as Patagonia and Santorini, made from grapes as varied as Alicante Bouschet and Zweigelt). But Zinfandel is far too good a wine to be judged strictly in terms of varietal qualities. The problem with ignoring terroir and appreciating Zinfandel only in terms of varietal character is that this approach is an affront to what truly makes wine special: something that is grown and then crafted, not manufactured or churned out in monotonous droves. When we relegate the best Zinfandels to narrowly defi ned varietal fruit qualities, we are placing more value on how well a wine conforms to preconceived notions rather than on how it might surprise or regale us with distinct qualities of its own. Put it another way: If, to you, the ideal Zinfandel is Turley's Hayne Vineyard Napa Valley Zinfandel, why buy anything but a Turley from Hayne? If that's what you think of Zinfandel, then you probably deserve to pay the price you have to pay just to drink a Turley Hayne, or to wait forever on a waiting list to get on their mailing list in order to buy Turley's Hayne. Funny thing, though: If you ask the Turley people themselves, they'll tell you that they certainly don't think their Hayne Zinfandel is the be-all and end-all. They'll tell you that their less opulent yet uniquely spiced Turley Dogpoint Zinfandel from Lodi is just as good or better. They'll also tell you that they love the compelling perfume of their Turley Duarte Zinfandel from Contra Costa County possibly even more, which is not to think any less of their sinewy, compact Turley Mead Ranch Zinfandel from Atlas Peak. You see, real Zinfandel lovers don't measure the value of a Zinfandel simply on the basis of an arbitrary conception of a "correct" Zinfandel. They look for diversity in Zinfandels Zinfa ILLUSTRATION BY JUSTINE GVIRTZMAN PHOTO: RANDY CAPAROSO

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