Robert Biale Vineyards Black Chicken Zinfandel 2021
The name Black Chicken comes from an old story stemming from the 1940s. Customers would use the party line phone to call the family farm & order the agricultural produce they had on the farm.
In need of additional income, Aldo soon learned from an uncle how to make wine from his grapes, which he then sold to his neighbors on the down-low. If you wanted some of Aldo’s Zin, you needed the password: Black Chicken. After all, a nosy neighbor listening in on the party line could turn Aldo in for his clandestine business venture; and some probably did as government inspectors came more than once looking for bootleg wine.
For those in the know, an order over the party line phone went something like this: “Hey Aldo, I need a dozen eggs, a bag of prunes, and a Black Chicken.” On Friday, the eggs and prunes were delivered by Aldo in his 1940 Studebaker along with a gallon jug of Zin.
Grape Varietals & Region: 100% Zinfandel coming from the Oak Knoll District in Napa Valley.
Taste Profile: The wine offers rich, plush fruit, delicate acidity and a structure defined by well- ripened tannins. Layered notes of black cherry, raspberry, sandalwood, bergamot, cloves, blueberry, and balsam on the nose. Delicate, yet rich with plum compote, violets, and baking spice on the palate
Winemaking Process: Fruit is hand-harvested, sorted in the field, and sorted again at the winery. Destemmed, the grapes are then fermented in open top tanks with punch downs gently carried out two to three times per day. Pressed, the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in 100% French oak barrels, of which 25% is new. Aged for 16 months in barrel.
