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| (E) Zinfandel and Croatia- Researchers Solve Mystery of Z's Origins |
| By Nenad N. Bach |
Published
01/29/2002
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(E) Zinfandel and Croatia- Researchers Solve Mystery of Z's Origins
Nenad,
Here's another reason to drink a red wine (and it's good for your heart).
Cheers,
Steve Rukavina
<A HREF="http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Home/1,1137,,00.html">Home</A>
> <A HREF="http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Daily_Main/1,1146,,00.html">
Daily Wine News</A> > Researchers Solve Mystery of Zinfandel's Origins
Researchers Solve Mystery of Zinfandel's Origins
Posted: Wednesday, January 23, 2002
By Lynn Alley
The hidden origins of California's Zinfandel grape have at last been
uncovered, according to prominent grapevine geneticist Carole Meredith, who
is known for her discoveries of the parents of <A
HREF="http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Archives/Show_Article/0,1275,1307,00.h
tml">Cabernet Sauvignon</A>, <A
HREF="http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Archives/Show_Article/0,1275,2371,00.h
tml">Chardonnay</A> and <A
HREF="http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Archives/Show_Article/0,1275,3322,00.h
tml">Syrah</A>. Using DNA profiling techniques, Meredith and two Croatian
scientists, Ivan Pejic and Edi Maletic, discovered in December that Zinfandel
and an indigenous Croatian grape called Crljenak are one and the same. The
modern search for Zinfandel's roots, so to speak, dates back to the late
1960s. While traveling in Italy, USDA plant pathologist Austin Goheen noticed
that the Primitivo grape widely cultivated in the Puglia region bore a strong
resemblance to Zinfandel. He brought Primitivo cuttings back to the
University of California, Davis, where he was based, for a closer look.
Goheen made his assumption based upon visual criteria, but he could never be
sure that Primitivo and Zinfandel were exactly the same variety. Other later
tests backed up Goheen's theory, but a definitive answer didn't come until
the 1990s, when Meredith -- a professor of enology and viticulture at UC
Davis -- used DNA profiling techniques capable of establishing grapevine
identity beyond doubt. Meredith determined that Primitivo and Zinfandel were
indeed two clones of the identical variety. But the question remained: Where
did Zinfandel-Primitivo originate? Italian researchers had determined that
Primitivo had only been cultivated in Puglia for about 150 to 250 years, but
were not sure how it had arrived in the region. Available historical records
first document Zinfandel's presence in the eastern United States in the 1820s
and indicate that it was then brought to California in the mid-1800s. An
Italian colleague had told Goheen in the '60s that a grape variety similar to
Primitivo grew in Croatia. Since there had long been an interchange of vines
between Croatia and southern Italy, Goheen speculated that this Croatian
variety, called Plavac Mali, might shed further light on the
Zinfandel-Primitivo mystery. In 1977, he obtained Plavac Mali cuttings and
cultivated them at Davis, but never determined whether it was the same
variety or a related one. Still on the trail of Zinfandel's origins in the
'90s, Meredith decided to visit Croatia to gather DNA samples of Plavac Mali.
In May 1998, Meredith, Pejic and Maletic searched many different vineyards on
the Dalmatian coast and on some of the larger islands offshore. She brought
back 150 samples to Davis for comparison with Zinfandel and Primitivo
samples. Although a definite relationship could be demonstrated between
Zinfandel and Plavac Mali, Meredith's work showed they were definitely not
the same variety. She believed that one was the offspring of the other, but
could not tell which was parent and which was offspring. Pejic and Maletic
continued to examine other old Croatian varieties, and in June 2001, the team
determined that a grape called Dobricic and Zinfandel were clearly the
parents of Plavac Mali. The discovery was compelling evidence, but still did
not prove conclusively that Zinfandel had originated in Croatia. Then, in
December 2001, Pejic told Meredith he had found a sample of a grape called
Crljenak, which he felt certain was Zinfandel. Pejic had the technology to do
simple DNA comparisons in his Croatian lab, but wanted Meredith to do a more
detailed, definitive analysis at Davis. Meredith's tests indeed confirmed
that Crljenak and Zinfandel were the same variety. At long last, Zinfandel's
Croatian heritage has been established beyond doubt. But Meredith pointed out
that the grape's trail doesn't necessarily end there. She speculated that
Crljenak could have been brought to Croatia from Albania or Greece. However,
the presence of one confirmed offspring and many other similar vines in the
region indicate that the variety has been in Croatia for a long time.
distributed by CROWN - www.croatianworld.net - CroWorldNet@aol.com
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