2018 Cabernet Franc Alegría Vineyards

Tasting Notes

The aromas offer inviting cherry and red currant woven with spicy notes. The smooth mouthfeel is balanced with buoyant acidity that adds brightness. An intriguing blend of coffee, tobacco, and fine herb merge with dark cherry, red plum, dried strawberry, and cedar. These delicious flavors remain into the long finish.

Winemaker's Notes

We planted Our Cabernet Franc field blend at Alegria Vineyards in 1991, when only a dozen California wineries were producing Cabernet Franc as a varietal wine. 2018 is our 15th bottling. 2018 is an exceptional vintage. Moderate temperatures and a long growing season allowed each variety to fully develop distinctive flavors and aromas. Zach and Bill said it was a pleasure to work in the vineyard that year, as they made necessary adjustments to the crop level to keep the vines in balance. We picked six weeks later than in 2017. Including other varieties with the Cab Franc results in a more complete wine. Over the years, we’ve also learned which barrels work best to elevate the wine. At dryness the wine was transferred to 100% French oak and aged sur lies for 17 months. We stirred the lees for the first six months to enhance mouthfeel and did not rack until bottling.

Click here to download a printable Fact Sheet PDF