Francis Coppola Zinfandel 2005 (California)
Price: $14.99
Grade: B
Francis Ford Coppola has given us a collection of great American films. “Apocalypse Now” traced the increasing madness and dehumanization that encompassed soldiers during the Vietnam War while “The Godfather” trilogy depicted the clash of the Old and New Worlds in America. Coppola’s daughter, Sophia, has also become an auteur with impressive accomplishments like “Lost in Translation” and “Marie Antoinette.” But the Coppola family résumé does not stop with great films and a mantle full of Oscars; they have now entered the world of wine in California.
Zinfandel is California’s star grape. Its thin skin and spicy character is a perfect match for the region’s dry, hot climate. In fact, there was a time when American vintners claimed that Zinfandel was indigenous to California. This “fact” greatly helped California wine makers argue that grapes indigenous to America were equal in quality to those in Europe.
European wine makers have long considered their wine superior to American wine, citing not only their traditional wine making techniques but their “terroir” and the popular grapes it produces. These Euro-pundits had a point: Despite the fact that every region of the world has its own indigenous grapes, European varietals (most noticeably French varietals) are grown everywhere, even in far-flung places like Australia and South America. California winemakers pointed to Zinfandel as a counterexample to snobby European opinions. It was capable of making high-quality wines with intense notes of red berry and spice. Take that, Europe!
DNA tests in the last few years, however, have confirmed that Zinfandel is not indigenous to America. It turns out that Zinfandel is actually Primitivo, a varietal from Italy. Further tests have also nearly proven that Primitivo originated somewhere along the Dalmatian Coast, probably Croatia. No dice for American apologists.
Whatever its origins, the best Zinfandel in the world comes from California. One note: Do not confuse Zinfandel with White Zinfandel — the latter is closer to a wine cooler than a real wine. One term that frequently appears on California Zinfandel labels (though it is not on the Coppola bottle) is “old vine.” After new vines are planted, it typically takes at least three to five years before that vine begins to produce good enough grapes to be harvested for wine. Depending on the grape, an extremely old vine (30 to 60 years old) can produce exceptional wine. Old vine Zinfandel, which usually retails for between $20 and $50, is the absolute pinnacle of the grape’s possibilities as it exhibits deeply concentrated and complex flavors.
This bottle of Francis Coppola Zinfandel is a little disappointing. The nose showed a velvety red berry character, mostly a mix between red and black cherry. There were also traces of cinnamon, nutmeg and rhubarb. Interestingly, I even picked up a medicinal scent that reminded me of Orajel, an oral pain reliever. Frankly, any complexity was masked by a strong alcohol and yeast smell. The palate was not much better as it displayed red and black cherry, smoke and leather flavors. Typical of California wine, the Coppola Zinfandel has a strong oak and vanilla character, which comes from storage in both French and American oak barrels. The latter always gives a strong vanilla, wood and coconut flavor to wine.
If this bottle of Zinfandel was $10 or less, I might have rated it more favorably. But at $15, we should expect more from the Coppola family. It seems that complexity in film does not translate to complexity in wine.
Jeff’s column runs biweekly Wednesdays. He can be reached at j.katra@cavalierdaily.com.
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