2018 Element Cabernet Franc Rosé “Equilibrium Wine Farm”
$45.00 / 750ml
11 Cases Produced
Wine Club Member Exclusive
It’s not really a secret…I don’t have a lot of love for rosé…
In general, this is the category I tend to skip over, as I find it often lacks in essentially every category, from freshness to joy. So, I think it’s worth noting that I chose to bottle this wine as Element. This wine doesn’t remind me of the simple, insipid rosé that floods the market. Instead, it calls to mind a few singular rosés that I have had the pleasure to experience over the years. Wines like Lopez de Heredia Gran Reserva Rosado, Musar Rosé, and the over-the-top rosé from Sine Qua Non, which means I am pretty serious about this wine.
Stunningly deep, complex, and perfumed. Aromas of rose and lavender leap from the glass, with dried strawberry, tart cherries and red plum leather enveloping them. The mouthfeel is full and broad, with nice density and a creamy, lingering finish.
Christopher’s Notes: Made with the saignée method, also known as “bleeding”, where shortly after crushing red fruit, a certain amount of juice will be “bled” off, concentrating the remaining wine, and leaving a higher skin-to-juice ratio. In this case, I was hoping to get a little higher extraction from the skins of my Cabernet Franc, by removing 100 liters or so of this wine. But what I wasn’t expecting was how absolutely delicious those 100 liters were going to eventually end up!
Cabernet Franc
A grape most traditionally associated with the Loire Valley (Chinon, etc.), Cabernet Franc has seen only a moderate amount of attention outside of France. While there are some notable examples of great Cabernet Franc being made around the globe, they’re still limited. It seems as though the Finger Lakes may become a stronghold for Cabernet Franc in the new world.
A bit lighter than its much more popular offspring Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc excels without the ripeness that Cabernet Sauvignon so often seems to need. Add its thick skins with loose clusters that allow airflow and we have a grape that seems made to excel in our cooler, moist climate. To seal the deal, it is also very cold tolerant.
We believe Cabernet Franc will be the iconic red grape of the Finger Lakes before long.
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