Food & Wine’s Ray Isle makes the case for a new generation of California Zinfandel in “Zinfandel Lightens Up,” arguing that the grape has shed its reputation for heavy, high-alcohol, oak-soaked styles in favor of something leaner and more food-friendly, and Frog’s Leap and Marietta both land among his picks from the category’s established producers.
The 2023 Frog’s Leap Napa Valley Zinfandel draws on dry-farmed vines planted nearly 50 years ago, the heart of the winery’s Zinfandel program. Isle describes a nose of juicy red berries with a hint of clove, noting that “those berry flavors continue straight through, ending on leather and dried orange peel.” The 2022 Marietta Román Zinfandel, meanwhile, gets its character from small percentages of Barbera and Petite Sirah in the blend, which Isle says lend the wine a sweetly resinous aroma, plenty of juicy blue and red berry flavor, and a sweetly herbal, almost Christmassy finish.
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