Innovations in grape growing, winemaking, and marketing that began in the 1950s reinvented the California wine industry. The industry saw changes in the way wine was produced, and in those who were making and drinking it. Some of those changes resulted from the arrival of families from Mexico who joined long-established winegrowers to blend traditional and innovative practices in the field, winery, and tasting room.
Deep Roots
Old vineyards planted by Italian immigrant families prior to 1950 produced Zinfandel and other grape varieties that quickly lost favor after the Paris Tasting. New wineries often replaced the old, deep-rooted Zinfandel vines that required no irrigation with the more productive and profitable Chardonnay and Cabernet. Yet some families kept the old varieties to make wine the traditional way. They also aimed to take the stiffness out of wine drinking through playful and humorous marketing.
The success of White Zin, made from the same grapes as “red” Zinfandel, saved the old vineyards from replanting long enough to preside over Zinfandel’s comeback on the California wine scene. Though scorned by wine critics and other winemakers, White Zin has remained a top seller.
Gift of Clementina Biale and Robert Biale
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This old wooden picking box was used to harvest Zinfandel on the Biale Ranch for many years by Aldo Biale and his family. The Biales still use the old boxes on special occasions.
Courtesy of Clementina Biale and Robert Biale
Aldo Biale and his son Bob feeding Zinfandel grapes into an old crusher suspended over a modern two-ton bin. The wine made from this small batch, labeled Bravo Aldo, was a tribute to Aldo, who died in 2009.
