January 13, 2017

Which of the following events did NOT happen in 1973?

A. Mouton Rothschild in Bordeaux got promoted to First Growth status

B. Sutter Home launched the first white zinfandel

C. Wine of Origin in South Africa was introduced

D. Marlborough’s first sauvignon blanc vines were planted

Many significant wine related events happened globally in 1973, but the creation of white zinfandel wasn’t among them. California’s Sutter Home actually introduced white zin the year before–in 1972. It wasn’t until 1975, however, that white zinfandel became the sweetish wine it is today. In that year, Sutter Home accidentally “discovered” the off-dry style of white zin thanks to a stuck fermentation. The very large producers Beringer and Woodbridge introduced their white zins soon after.

Anti-white Bias?

“Given the speed of M&A activity in the last decade alone, it’s not difficult to imagine that within another 50 years Napa Valley’s winery ownership may have shifted starkly and permanently away from families.”

—Ester Mobley, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle 6/30/2022, on the sale earlier that week of Joseph Phelps Vineyards to Möet Hennessy Louis Vuitton

—Ester Mobley, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle 6/30/2022, on the sale earlier that week of Joseph Phelps Vineyards to Möet Hennessy Louis Vuitton

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