Caymus Vineyards estate spotlight
The Wagner family’s official film follows Caymus from its 1972 founding into its continuing exploration of California vineyards.
2021 Caymus Vineyards Zinfandel
The Wagner family’s small Zinfandel bottling honors co-founder Charlie Wagner Sr. and pours in the generous, fruit-led Caymus style.
Caymus may be famous for Cabernet, but this 2021 California Zinfandel tells a more personal family story. Cherry, pomegranate, cocoa and spice move through a soft entry and rustic finish. At $33, it is an easy Caymus bottle to open.
About 8% below winery price
Caymus’s family story, told through Zinfandel.
This release carries a famous California name into a wine that feels more personal, more relaxed and immediately at home beside dinner.
A Caymus original
Zinfandel was a favorite grape of co-founder Charlie Wagner Sr. The family keeps the bottling small, making it a direct link to the people behind the better-known Cabernets.
California breadth
Fruit from several California regions brings ripe berry flavor, warm spice and the rustic edge that gives Zinfandel its unmistakable personality.
Rich, not heavy
The wine enters softly, then cherry, pomegranate, cocoa and cedar gather around an earthy texture. The finish stays vibrant rather than sweet or blunt.
Made for the table
Its dark fruit and spice can handle slow braises, smoky vegetables, pizza and barbecue. This is Caymus for a generous meal, not a formal occasion.
How close is this Caymus Zinfandel to winery pricing?
The $33 WineSlash price sits $3, or about 8%, below the supplied $36 winery price for the same 2021 California bottling.
At $33 per bottle, the 6-bottle allocation totals $198.
Review the official Caymus page (opens in a new tab) for producer context. The $36 comparison price was supplied for this promotion and is shown separately from the live WineSlash price.
A modest discount, but an unusually approachable door into Caymus’s family Zinfandel story.
Open one with dinner and keep the rest ready for barbecue, pizza and slow braises.
Secure Your AllocationDark fruit, warm spice and a rustic streak.
This is not a lean Zinfandel. It is ripe and broad, with enough earth and lift to keep the fruit from reading simple.
Cherry and pomegranate lead, joined by cedar, nutmeg, vanilla bean and a faint pencil-shaving note.
A soft entry turns more rustic through the middle. The wine is ripe but not heavy, with fruit and earth held in useful balance.
The finish is long, textured and lightly oaked. Pour it slightly cool and let the glass open while dinner comes to the table.
California fruit, shaped in the generous Caymus style.
Regional breadth gives the wine its layered fruit; careful farming and patient oak bring the spice, roundness and familiar polish.
Across California: The 2021 draws from celebrated growing areas that include Napa Valley, Lake County, Suisun Valley, Lodi and Monterey County, combining warm-day ripeness with cooler-night freshness.
Vines with character: Older and newer blocks include crown-pruned and dry-farmed vines. Those farming choices encourage concentrated fruit and the earthy, slightly untamed edge that makes Zinfandel feel like Zinfandel.
Built for texture: The grapes were hand-harvested, fermented under controlled conditions and matured for 21 months in French oak, adding cedar, vanilla and nutmeg without burying the wine’s cherry core.
From a Rutherford family table to California Zinfandel.
The bottle carries more than a famous name. It remembers the grape Charlie Wagner Sr. loved and the farming life that shaped Caymus.
The Wagner family’s California wine story begins with Napa farming roots reaching back to the 1850s. In Rutherford, generations learned vineyards by working them, a practical tradition that still shapes how the family talks about wine today.
In 1972, Charlie and Lorna Wagner joined their nineteen-year-old son, Chuck, to turn admired home wine into Caymus Vineyards. They named the winery for Rancho Caymus, the historic Mexican land grant that once included their property.
Zinfandel was a favorite of co-founder Charlie Wagner Sr., so this small bottling is more personal than a portfolio extension. The 2021 California release connects that family memory to the Wagners’ continuing search across the state’s vineyard regions.
Give the fruit something savory to lean against.
Lamb, root vegetables, beans and smoked paprika meet the wine where it lives: ripe fruit, earthy depth and warm spice.
Both pairings are forgiving, deeply flavored dishes that let the Zinfandel feel generous without turning heavy.
Serve slightly cool, around 60 to 65°F. A brief rest in the glass is enough to bring the cherry, cedar and spice forward.
Lamb Stew With Root Vegetables
Slow-cooked lamb and sweet roots echo the wine’s earthy depth while giving its cherry fruit a rich, savory frame.
Why it works: Lamb handles the wine’s body; carrots, turnips and potatoes pick up its ripe fruit and warm oak spice.
View Recipe for Lamb Stew With Root Vegetables (opens in a new tab)
Vegetarian Chili With Smoked Paprika
Beans, tomato and peppers offer enough depth for the wine, while smoked paprika mirrors its cocoa, cedar and spice notes.
Why it works: The chili’s smoke meets the Zinfandel’s rustic side; bright tomato keeps the ripe fruit lively.
View Recipe for Vegetarian Chili With Smoked Paprika (opens in a new tab)Bring Caymus to the table in a different key.
This is the Wagner family’s plush, savory Zinfandel, rooted in a personal favorite and made for an evening that does not need ceremony.
Lamb stew, chili, pizza and barbecue all give the fruit and spice a comfortable landing place.
Its soft entry and full body make it easy to reach for when dinner needs more warmth than polish.
The Charlie Wagner Sr. connection turns the bottle into a conversation about family, farming and California Zinfandel.
Choose the Caymus bottling that feels personal, generous and ready to pour.
