Tried this unusually modestly priced Biale Zin this weekend:
1. RobertBiale Zin PartyLine NorthCoast (14.7%) Napa 2019: Dark color; rather earthy/MendoCnty/tomatoey rather vanilla/Am.oak some raspberry/Zin/bit spicy bit old-timey/redwood tanky slight dishwater rather unthrilling nose; quite tart/tangy/rather metallic rather lean/austere earthy/MendoCnty/tomatoey very old-timey Calif Zin rather vanilla/redwood tanky rather lean/eviscerated flavor w/ light rough tannins; med.long some spicy/raspberry/Zin some earthy/MendoCnty rather okd-timey/redwood tanky somewhat lean/eviscerated finish w/ light coarse tannins; tastes like a cheap old-timey Calif Zin, like Parducci or Pedroncelli, but w/ a bit more extract than those often showed...may like a Zin of GusSebastiani more than anything; this is how RobertBiale would make a cheap Calif Zin if he chose to; tastes a lot of MendoCnty; lacks the usual rich/lush Biale character & the Biale pricing; not a bad Zin but not very attractive. $24.00 (KK)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. I have, of course, followed the Biale Zins from the very start when BobBiale & Dave Pramuk first showed at a ZAP Ft.Mason tasting. I have generally liked their Zins quite a lot. But over the recent yrs, have become a bit on the pricey side. Which is why I jumped on this modestly priced Biale.
The back label tells a cute story of back in the days of the party lines (for those who remember those) and back in the days of Prohibition; when Aldo Biale had some bootleg Zin to sell, when you called him up he would say "black chicken" if he had some hooch to sell, but didn't want to broadcast it on the party line because of the revenuers. Apparently it worked & he avoided being busted. This cute story is about the best think you can say about this Zin.
Tom