Gang of Pour gets Zapped at ZAP ' 99

Gang of Pour Gets
Zapped at ZAP '99

It’s a simple story. The Director decided she wanted to go to ZAP, and who was I to argue? }:^)>

We first heard about ZAP just over 2 years ago from various posters on the Wine Spectator's Internet Zinfandel Forum. We found the idea of a BIG tasting of barrel samples from the upcoming vintage to be fascinating, but gave it little more thought until last year, when we were so impressed with califusa's account of ZAP '98.

Thus was sown the seed of a growing desire to attend the next event, and by October, 1998, we decided to do just that. We discussed the matter with califusa and applied for Press credentials. The rest is his(her)story.

THE ZAP TASTING!!
Fort Mason, Festival Pavilion, San Francisco, California – January 30, 1999: Up bright and early, we drank plenty of Peet’s French Roast, didn’t shower and hit Highway 1 at around 10 AM.
This was the big Kahuna . . . ==> MORE

THE AUCTION!
The Gift Center, San Francisco, California – January 29, 1999:

I wasn’t particularly happy that I’d been coerced into bringing semi-dorky clothing to wear to this gala event only to see califusa wearing old blue jeans, old loafers (without socks) and a nice shirt that wasn’t ironed OR tucked in. I was in a new pair of Nikes, but c’mon, I’m supposed to be a hip dude!

Actually, this was a fabulous evening, for so many reasons. And we didn’t even make a single bid in the auction… ==> MORE

THE OFF-LINES!!
Wired wine lovers interact regularly online, from points all over the world. In just the last few months, we've enjoyed communicating with folks from such far flung locations as Melbourne, Oslo and Tel Aviv. However, it's those relatively infrequent opportunities when we can meet offline that are so special. We were happy to be able to attend two such "offlines" after the ZAP Festival. ==> MORE

THE WINEMAKERS!!
We had the pleasure of tasting some excellent wines from some exciting new producers. Three of the best came from the family run operations at Dashe Cellars, Acorn Vinyards and Carlisle Cellars. All three made very fine ’97 Zins, so we asked a few questions and got some interesting answers. Here’s what we found out. ==> MORE

THE GOOD EATS!!
Rosenblum Cellars - Alameda, California - January 28, 1999: We'd been told that this event was the favorite of the Festival for many attendees, not only for the food and wine pairings and California casual dress code, but also for the less crowded, more accessible pouring/grazing stations. (In fact, the quarters did get a bit tight at times, as folks gathered to get a sample of the latest efforts from some of their favorite Zin producers. However, this never became a real problem . . ., ) ==> MORE

THE HERITAGE!!
"The ZINFANDEL HERITAGE VINEYARD is an amazing project for ZAP and the University of California Davis. Every vine represent living examples of our county's agricultural and cultural heritage. Think of it, we know that the journey for each of these vines started in Europe -- likely each from a unique political jurisdiction. Earlier clones made their way across oceans and vast land masses, always vulnerable on the their environment and care of others. Now, we have them all securely rooted together here in California. They are doing just fine :-)"

Richard Flores, ZAP Board Member ==> MORE

THE ADVOCATES!!
It doesn't seem like a very long time ago. I was reading the newsletter from Ridge Vineyards, and noticed a small item on the bottom of the last page. It introduced a new organization that was dedicated to enhancing the knowledge and enjoyment of Zinfandel.
While ZAP would not exist without the efforts and support of the wineries, and the hard work of the Executive Director and a core of key people, I think everyone would agree that the heart and soul of ZAP is its cadre of volunteers. This started out as a small committee, and has grown into a small army. ==> MORE

THE HISTORY!!
"ZAP was started by Jerry Seps who called together 6 or 8 wineries and had a meeting. One of them happened to be Rafanelli; I'm not even sure Ridge was there, but it was Sutter Home and some of the major Napa Valley wineries that were involved and maybe about 6 or 8 people and they decided to form this organization called ZAP." ==> MORE