This wine is for those who love old vines; those who love great value; those who love Zinfandel, of course; those who love fish curry (yes really); and those who love the sheer, unadulterated pleasure of wine.
That should cover just about everyone, and I especially appeal to those who default to bordeaux, burgundy and the other classics: you are missing out! This wine is absolutely nothing like the wines you normally drink, which is exactly the point. Sip outside your comfort zone: it may seem unfamiliar, but only the most congenital curmudgeon wouldn't find oodles of pleasure in this exemplary old-vine Zinfandel from Lodi in California.
And it's got a great label too.
This is Zinfandel at its rootin'-tootin' best. Its abundance of flavour reminds me of an old British beer advert whose caption read 'What's the matter lagerboy, afraid you might taste something?'
Fruit is foremost, and there is a stew of blackberry, plum and dark cherry with supreme ripeness but an all-important dry finish. Pinches of spice pepper the palate, a bit like chilli-flavoured chocolate, that mix of sweet, bitter and heat. Speaking of which, this is a 15-percenter, folks, which is just as it should be, because it balances seamlessly with the rich fruit, full body, moderate acid and tannins that slink around the palate like a black cat. Yet there is no excess baggage – thanks to natural balance from those old vines, perhaps – and the opulent fruit persists brilliantly on the long finish.
Fruit generosity is the hallmark not just of Zinfandel, but of the hot Lodi region of California (see this map) where these grapes are sourced. As Jancis reported in April, Lodi is a region with that is down on its luck. The overall harvest of Zinfandel has been greatly reduced in recent years because of a reduced demand for White Zinfandel, the medium-sweet rosé that is essential for WSET courses but apparently less essential for retail shelves these days. It seems a particular shame that as much as 40% of the fruit from a region renowned for its old vines is going to waste – and laudable that Delicato Family Wines are putting at least some of that fruit to such good use.
Delicato celebrated their 100th birthday last year. Originally from Sicily, the first generation of the Indelicato family planted vines in California in 1924 and released their first vintage in 1935, efficiently skipping over the Prohibition period. Today, they have grown to become the fifth largest winery in the US, producing more than 16 million cases a year, including the Black Stallion and Francis Ford Coppola brands, which they acquired in 2010 and 2021 respectively.
Brazin is clearly not one of their core wines, since it barely features on their website, but there is at least a technical sheet, describing the wine as follows:
‘Our Lodi Zinfandel is crafted from head-trained Zinfandel vines that range from 40 to 100 years of age. Our relationships with these family-owned vineyards have endured three, even four generations. The majority of the blend was aged in French and American oak barrels for 12 months.’
I bought my bottle of the 2022 vintage of Brazin Old Vine Zinfandel from Waitrose on a recent visit to London (see main picture) when it was on offer at £13 per bottle. Elsewhere in the UK, The Wine Society stock the 2021 at £14.95, and it is also available in at least eight EU countries. Delicato tell me that it is a brand made for export, but it is still available in the US from $15.99 from retailers based in Texas, Illinois, Florida and New York, according to Wine-Searcher. I scored it 16.5, as did Jancis when she reviewed the 2010 vintage back in 2013, when she also marked it as GV (good value).
I nearly forgot the fish curry! I've discovered that Zinfandel is an uncanny match with curries that use coconut milk as well as the full array of curry spices: fenugreek, cumin, mustard, fennel, coriander, cinnamon, turmeric and curry leaves. The Keralan fish curry pictured is one such example, and you can even serve Zinfandel lightly chilled, which de-emphasises the alcoholic strength without sacrificing the sweet spice aromas that pair so well with dishes like this.
I'll be writing more about matching wine with Asian dishes in the next few months, but in the meantime, however and wherever you serve it, this Zinfandel is for you.
Don't miss out!
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