Listen up: They’re done, they’re toast, they’re over, those blobular, Brobdingnagian, 16.5% alcohol Zins of the past, with their silly high scores — what were people thinking anyway? That it was fun to drink a wineglass full of oak-soaked blackberry jam with enough booze in it to put you on the floor? We live in a weird world, but thankfully, some trends pass.
But don’t blame the grape for what people used to do with it. Treated well, grown with care, Zinfandel makes reds that manage to be both luscious and balanced, full of berry fruit and spice. Today, new producers as well as more familiar names are making Zins that are actually exciting. They aren’t underripe — they still have presence and flavor — but they are unquestionably less weighty (and often lower in alcohol) than you might expect, and they go particularly well with cooler-weather foods. That makes them ideal for holiday entertaining, not to mention for drinking throughout the winter. Here are 17 to buy now.
Related: If You Think You Know California Wine, You Better Know These 7 Grapes
New Names
2023 Monte Rio Cellars Old Vines Lodi Zinfandel ($25)
Ancient Zinfandel vines in Lodi (85 to 120 years old) are the source for this lightly herbal, berry-rich red. The light tannins and buoyant flavors make it easy to drink in the best way, and a gentle tobacco note on the finish adds a little complexity.
2022 Hobo Wine Co. Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel ($26)
Minimal new oak and a modest alcohol level (13%) allow the bright strawberry and cherry fruit flavors of this Sonoma County red from winemaker Kenny Likitprakong to show through clearly. People tend to think of Zinfandel as a main-course wine, but this would be excellent at aperitivo hour.
2023 Maître de Chai Stampede Vineyard Zinfandel ($34)
Two former chefs launched Maître de Chai (which translates to “keeper of the cellar”) in 2012, concentrating on expressive single-vineyard wines that remain affordable, too. This powerful yet elegant red comes from a vineyard in the Clements Hills, on the eastern edge of the large Lodi appellation.
2025 Scar of the Sea Old Vine Lopez Vineyard Zinfandel ($36)
This red from winemaker Mikey Giugni is dark, juicy, and full of spicy strawberry and boysenberry flavors, but not heavy at all, coming in at a low 13% alcohol. It comes from an organically farmed vineyard in the Cucamonga Valley planted in 1918.
2024 Martha Stoumen California Zinfandel ($38)
Martha Stoumen makes some of the best low-intervention, natural wine in the U.S., and this is a great intro to her work. Think light, crunchy berry flavors and an aroma suggesting violet pastilles, with minimal tannins. Whatever the season, this is a perfect red to chill.
2023 Overshine Maple Vineyard Zinfandel ($38)
This new producer makes several different single-vineyard Zinfandels, all in a fairly streamlined mode. All are good, but the standout in 2023 comes from Maple Vineyard in Dry Creek Valley, whose oldest vines date back to 1910. It’s bright with blueberry and boysenberry flavors, with a high-toned spice note.
2024 Broc Cellars Vine Starr Sonoma County Zinfandel ($40)
In 2004, Chris Brockway started Broc Cellars, one of the early California wineries to concentrate on low-intervention, organically farmed, lighter-style wines. Still operating out of an urban winery space in Berkeley, California, he’s remained true to his initial inspiration: Witness this bright, lively Zin, with its raspberry and black pepper notes — and only 12.5% alcohol.
2023 Vinos Finos de California Ink Claw Zinfandel ($65)
An unusual blend of 80% Zinfandel and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Joullian Vineyard in California’s Carmel Valley, this red is bright, brisk, and tart in a palate-whetting way. Its cherry-berry flavors would go terrifically with seared duck breast.
Old Hands
2023 Dashe Cellars Vineyard Select Zinfandel ($25)
Mike Dashe founded his eponymous winery in 1996 and has been producing Zinfandels like this one ever since: silky, juicy, and delightful, in this case with minty boysenberry flavors. Don’t look for wild complexity here; seek out his reserve and single-vineyard wines for that. It’s just Zin being utterly charming, which it does so well.
2022 Marietta Román Zinfandel ($27)
Perhaps it’s the small percentages of Barbera (4%) and Petite Sirah (4%) in the blend that give this Zinfandel such a seductive, sweetly resinous aroma; it smells almost like a Barolo Chinato (an Italian red infused with herbs, spices, and quinine bark). That leads into plenty of juicy blue and red berry fruit and a sweetly herbal Christmastime-y finish.
2023 Green & Red Vineyard Chiles Canyon Estate Zinfandel ($36)
There’s a bass note of earthiness running through this blackberry-plummy wine from longtime Napa Valley producer Green & Red (founded in 1977 by sculptor/vintner Jay Heminway and now run by his daughter Tobin). It ends with a smoky mocha note that lingers intriguingly.
2023 Frog’s Leap Napa Valley Zinfandel ($47)
Grapes from dry-farmed vines planted nearly 50 years ago are the heart of this classic Zinfandel from Frog’s Leap winemaker/owner John Williams. The nose suggests juicy red berries with a hint of clove, and those berry flavors continue straight through, nuanced at the end by suggestions of leather and dried orange peel.
2023 Chateau Montelena Estate Zinfandel ($50)
As editor Lucy Simon said during our tasting, “If you were expecting macho, defensive lineman Zin, you’d be pretty disappointed in this.” She’s exactly right, and that’s also the wine’s strength: It’s so eminently drinkable. Ripe red plum-berry flavors, sure, but lifted by juicy acidity; tannins, yes, but plush rather than astringent; and a long, lingering finish.
2023 Nalle Winery Dry Creek Valley Old Vine Zinfandel ($54)
I really think it’s impossible not to love this wine (a bold statement, but I’ll stand by it). It has everything that makes Zinfandel such an easy-to-love variety: bold dark fruit suggestive of ripe wild berries, lashes of black pepper and spice, complexity and simple delight on the palate all at once. Nalle, which has been around since 1984, flies under many wine lovers’ radar. It’s about time that changed.
2023 Once & Future Old Hill Ranch Zinfandel ($67)
Joel Peterson is a Zinfandel legend, having started Ravenswood in the 1970s at a time when old-vine, single-vineyard Zins were unheard of; the vines were there, but the fruit largely went into cheap, mass-market blends. He sold Ravenswood in 2001 and eventually started Once & Future, but all along he has worked with fruit from the now-140-year-old vines at Old Hill, making kaleidoscopic reds (think blackberries, dried herbs, mocha, black pepper, and more) like this one.
2023 Monte Rosso Estate The Essence Zinfandel ($85)
The Monte Rosso vineyard was first planted in the 1880s, and there are still 40 or so acres of vines from that era here. They’re what supply the grapes for this Zin-driven blend, which has layers of blue and red fruit flavor bolstered by dusty mountain tannins. Powerful yet finely balanced, it’s a remarkable expression of one of California’s most historic vineyard sites.
2024 Ridge Vineyards Paso Robles Zinfandel ($46)
The Paso Robles sun shows through in the baked boysenberry-tart character of this old-vine bottling from Ridge. But the wine isn’t heavy at all, and those ripe fruit flavors wrap up with an alluring, herbal bay leaf note. No matter the time of year, it’d be stellar with grilled sausages.
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