Zinfandel is the quintessential American wine. Most people get their introduction to the grape through white zinfandel, a wine invented when one winery had a lot of the grape on their hands and no market. Their solution was to press the wine, remove it from any contact with the skins of the grapes, and stop the fermentation early. The result was a sweet white wine that sold gazillions of cases and made some folks very rich.

Then there’s the real zinfandel: a bold, powerful, teeth-staining red wine. High in alcohol and exploding with flavor, this is a wine that matches the enthusiasm and excitement of the people of America.

These are the 10 best zinfandels of the year, in alphabetical order:

Biale Aldo’s Vineyard

Biale Black Chicken

Bogle Phantom

Brutocao Cellars Zinfandel

Elyse Korte Ranch

Novy Papera Ranch

Rancho Zabaco Stefani Vineyard

Rosenblum Rockpile

Seghesio Cortina

St. Francis Pagani Ranch

This article appears in 2006.

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Wes Marshall is the author of What's a Wine Lover To Do? (Artisan) and The Wine Roads of Texas (Maverick), as well as the Executive Producer of the PBS television series of the same name. Wes has written for The Austin Chronicle since 1999, covering wine, cocktails, food, and travel.