About 10% of all the wine-grape acreage in California is planted to Zinfandel so it's hard not to think of this grape as a domestic treasure. However the vines planted in California most likely came from Apulia, Italy's southern heel, where it is known as Primitivo. DNA research has revealed that Zinfandel's origin is Croatia, where it is known as Tribidrag. Because of the international interest in Zinfandel and Primitivo, this research also fueled plantings in Dalmatia from only 23 vines identified through DNA research to over 200,000 vines two decades later. In all three regions, the clusters are long and the ripening uneven: a single ripe cluster may contain both raisins, overripe fruit, and underripe, green berries. We measure the Brix in the red must twice; once when the fruit is crushed and again two or three days later before we begin punchdowns. It's common that Zinfandel harvested at 24° Brix ends up at 27° Brix after cold-soaking with raisins, so Zinfandel and Primitivo wines tend to have higher alcohols than Pinot Noir.

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