Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
A big Zin, ripe and briary, with toasty dark cherry and bitter chocolate aromas. Offers dense, youthful flavors of blackberry, licorice and peppery dried herb. Needs time. Best from 2016 through 2021.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
It always amazes me how Robert Biale Vineyards can make such big and powerful wines that are so well balanced. The lively and bright 2012 Founding Farmers Zinfandel plays rich and fulfilling on the palate, yet manages to be brisk and fresh. This is a very appealing, albeit rich wine.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.