Winetravel.com - Dry Creek: Zin-lover's tour Well known for robust zinfandel, the area around Healdsburg, California is a hotbed of wineries just waiting to pour you a sip Winetravel Home

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Dry Creek: Zin-lover's tour

Well known for robust zinfandel, the area around Healdsburg, California is a hotbed of wineries just waiting to pour you a sip

Why do we love Zin? Oh, let us count the ways. Maybe because it's a big, beefy wine that never lets us down. Maybe because it goes so well with everything from pizza to pork belly. Or maybe because it's just so darned delicious.

The area around Dry Creek (about 90 minutes north of San Francisco) has some of the heartiest, most complex zinfandels in Wine Country. Here are some of our favorites .

Seghesio Family Vineyards
After years in the bulk-wine business, this fourth-generation winemaking family has returned to the simpler ideals of family patriarch Edoardo Seghesio. Now crafting premium Italian varietals in relatively small quantity (about 35,000 cases annually), the winery is just minutes from downtown. Zinfandel is the winery’s top seller, and is among some of the most-lauded in the region. Friday through Sunday the winery offers wine and food pairings from Chef Jon Helquist adapted from old Seghesio family recipes. Includes a picnic area.

Bella Vineyards & Wine Caves
A newcomer to the Dry Creek scene, Bella quickly became one of the hippest destinations for the H-burg crowd both because of the estate Zins and Syrahs, but also for it’s rural-chic sensibility. The tasting room is deep inside a twinkle-lighted wine cave lined with nifty knick-knacks and celebrity photos of the family’s much-loved winery pup. Open daily from 11 am to 4:30 pm. Includes a picnic area, offers handicap access. Tasting room fee: $5, Reserve tasting: $5.

Dashe
Housed in the Family Wineries complex, you’ll get plenty of bang for your buck here. Dashe’s single vineyard Zins are a hot commodity, garnering plenty of high marks for their boutique production. While you’re there, check out nearby Amphora. If you’re a pinot lover, Papapietro-Perry is tucked into a nearby warehouse—some of the best pinots being produced in the area.

Mazzocco
The darling of zin fanatics and critics alike, Mazzocco has become something of a pilgrimage spot. But you don’t have to be an oenophile to appreciate their Zen-like retreat. The rustic-chic tasting room has floor to ceiling windows, comfy chairs and a nearby reflecting pool to, you know, reflect on how jealous your friends back home must be right now.

Rosenblum Cellars
Located next to the Healdsburg satellite of the Oakville Grocery store, Rosenblum's tasting room echoes the laid back attitude of Kent Rosenblum, a former vet and legendary winemaking character. Suffice to say there's little pretention going on here, despite the cache of some of Kent's wines. Best bets are to start with cutesy sippers like Chateau La Paws then move to impressive vineyard designate wines. Make sure to save room for the zinfandels, however, which are a special strength.

Ridge Vineyards at Lytton Springs
Ridge’s winemaker, Paul Draper, is a legend in the wine biz, provoking semi-hysteria in his admirers. Aside from the killer Zins, a taste of Ridge’s pricey red blend Monte Bello is worth the trip alone. Eco-minded sippers will appreciate the hay-bale construction of the tasting room.

Preston Vineyards
Yes, it’s a haul to the way-far end of Dry Creek. But Lou Preston is worth it. Part visionary, part curmudgeon, a trip to the farm usually includes some combination of petting the barn kitties, buying some of Lou’s fresh bread (if you’re early), grabbing a 3-liter jug of Guadagni (Sundays only) and sipping a bottle of Barbera at the picnic table and trying to avoid breaking any of Preston’s rules. (And trust me, there is a sign informing you of them all as you walk in.)

Quivira Vineyards
One of the earliest adopters of biodynamic winemaking in Sonoma County, Quivira consistently turns out solid, affordable wines while paying homage to local ecosystems. The small tasting room is bright, modern and light and offers up a primer on some of their eco-practices. Check out the restored salmon creek running behind the winery while sipping some lush old-vine zinfandels. A can’t miss: Fig Tree Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc that’s a steal at $18. Picnic tables available.

Mauritson
After years (140 to be exact) of selling their Dry Creek grapes to others, the Mauritson family finally have a winery of their own. The younger Mauritsons play a significant role in daily operations, bringing vitality and fun to the tasting room and the wines. Step outside to the patio for some sunny sipping.

Preston Vineyards

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Insiders know...

Zin is a red wine grape originally thought to be indigenous to California. Then experts believed that the Zinfandel grape was brought to the United States from Italy's Puglia region, and was a descendant of the primitivo grape grown there.

Now the story goes that Zinfandel is genetically identical to the grape Crljenak kaštelanski, from Croatia. Napa winemaker Mike Grgich, himself of Croatian descent, led the search and discovery.

Regardless, the Zinfandel grape-with its spicy, raspberry flavors-makes marvelous, fruity red wines ranging from lighter styles to big, rich bottlings that can rival cabernet sauvignon. In the 1980s, white Zinfandel (a blush wine) also gained considerable popularity.

Occasionally, late-picked grapes full of concentrated sugar are made into late-harvest Zinfandels and served as dessert wine or in place of port.

--Answers.com

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