World class Zin's at this tasting.. Front row and centre Domaine de l'Arjolle 'Z' 2008! pic.twitter.com/LOtM5Ro9Pg

— Terroir Wines (@TerroirWinesVan) February 28, 2014

As I was tasting the 100-plus bottles in this first Vintages release of the year, I did a sudden double take. What? A zinfandel from France? Impossible!

Yes, Z De L’Arjolle 2011 Zinfandel (#346072, $19.95, rating 91/100) is from the Languedoc region of southern France. It was the brainchild of owner Louis-Marie Teisserenc, hailed as “the bearded wonder of the Languedoc.”
His winery, Domaine de l’Arjolle, has a single hectare of zinfandel grapes, now nearing 17 years old and really hitting their stride.

My tasting notes say: “Lavish bouquet of blackberry, cognac-soaked vanilla pod and cedar. The flavours unfold in rich layers of smokiness, with black cherry, cola, dates, mocha and blackberry juiciness.”

Teisserenc’s idea for growing zinfandel was born during his visit to the Napa, where he encountered California’s signature grape and marvelled at its intensity and ability to maintain acidity even in high heat and sun-stroked days, which meant it might work in the Languedoc.

He had to lobby grape authorities back home to get permission to grow zinfandel. Six years of persistent pleading and arguing with the horrific grape control bureaucracy finally resulted in him planting zinfandel, still the only vineyard of zin in all of France.
Since there is no existing classification for it, it must be labelled as a Vin de France.
It’s gorgeous on the palate. We are lucky Vintages landed a few cases, as it’s mostly sold out in the U.S.

Overall, I find this French zinfandel to be superior to most Cali zins, simply because it is less pruney and stewed and port-like. In fact, it’s downright elegant

Article by Gordon Stimmell
The Star

Fresh fish & chips,delicious domaine de l'Arjolle '08 Zin #simple @RichardGoodine @reallyjoeleary @GoodWolfeVan pic.twitter.com/UxqNfu6Mix

— Terroir Wines (@TerroirWinesVan) January 17, 2014

Tribidrag. That’s the newly revealed historic name for a grape we know remarkably well: Zinfandel. Meredith had asked federal regulators to approve the first Tribidrag to be made in modern times.[…]

All grist for the nerdiest of the nerdy - if not for the fact that Meredith is also the vine geneticist who sleuthed out the mystery of Zinfandel’s origins, finding it identical to an obscurity in a single vineyard on the Dalmatian coast of Croatia, where it was known as Crljenak Kastelanski. […]

Meanwhile, Zinfandel’s - hence Tribidrag’s - history kept stretching back in time, enough so that Tribidrag was used as Zinfandel’s official name in wine authority Jancis Robinson’s new book, “Wine Grapes.” Historian Ambroz Tudor uncovered references as far back as the early 1400s; Tribidrag wine was traded with Venice across the Adriatic - significant enough to be referenced by name.

“What to me makes this so sweet,” Meredith says, is that “not only did we figure out where in Europe Zinfandel came from, but it was important. It wasn’t a junk grape. It had nobility to it.”

Read more at SFGate

During my first trip through Californian vineyards in 1989, I was charmed with the fruity and spicy aromas and the pleasant acidity of red Zinfandel.

The Zinfandel grape, that you may call the “King of California”, seems to find its best expression in the region of Calistoga, northern Napa Valley. Some of the most talented wine growers joined in the so-called ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates & Producers), organing an annual Zinfandel Festival, worldwide renown for 20 years.

Back in France, I proposed to the associates of the Arjolle to plant Zinfandel in our vineyards. After a certain time of typical French administrative struggle, we finally planted some 4000 root stocks in the sandy limestone soils of our vineyard called “Campredon” in 1996.

After a couple of years of work, necessary to acclimatise the Zinfandel grapes to the Mediterranean vineyards of the Côtes de Thongue, our effort was awarded by the bottling of our first 100% Zinfandel wine in 2000.

It still is the only French Zinfandel wine, and we are very proud about it.

I love to have this wine on typical “Brasserie” dishes, like Cassoulet (typical bean stew from southern France), knuckle of pork and goulash. But, during summer, slightly chilled, our Zinfandel also is a surprising company to grilled fish, or even chocolate based deserts.

We will have a glass on you !

Sincerely yours,

Louis-Marie Teisserenc

Domaine de l’Arjolle Côtes de Thongue

ROUGH & READY, Calif., Nov. 5, 2010 /PRNewswire/
Blogger and social media entrepreneur R. Christian Oggenfuss and Zinfandel Advocates & Producers (ZAP) announce Global Zinfandel Day (called “#Zinfandel”), November 19^th from 12:01 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. (PST).

“It’s a 24-hour event for wine lovers to explore Zinfandel, the uniquely American varietal that pairs well with a wide array of foods,” explains organizer Chris Oggenfuss.
“For our premiere #Zinfandel Day we envision people around the world tasting Zinfandels and sharing their recommendations, whether with friends at home or in the virtual global community via #Zinfandel on social media sites,” he adds.

ZAP Zinfandel Advocates & Producers and Christian Oggenfuss, DWS of Vintuba.com

The Association of Zinfandel Advocates & Producers (ZAP) was founded almost twenty years ago—back in the day—when Zinfandel was the underdog with a cause. A small group of passionate wine pioneers and Zinfandel-loving enthusiasts came together because they believed that Zinfandel deserved recognition as a highly respected varietal that could compete with the finest wines around the world. Today, ZAP comprises hundreds of producer members and thousands of advocates. Zinfandel has now come to be recognized and respected internationally as a world-class red wine that tells a wonderful American story.