2016 CABERNET FRANC, MENDOCINO COUNTY
Eyes: Translucent Ruby
Nose: Crushed strawberries, mint, cedar.
Mouth: Bright and light, wild strawberry fruit on the front of the pallet dominates. The neutral oak aging, allows the silky mid-palate to provide refreshing acidity, and dangling red currants and minerality to finish. Best served with a slight chill, allows the wine to show a beautiful varietal arc in the glass.
pH 3.74 | 14.4% abv. | 70 cases produced
Bottle price: $45
Eyes: Translucent Ruby
Nose: Crushed strawberries, mint, cedar.
Mouth: Bright and light, wild strawberry fruit on the front of the pallet dominates. The neutral oak aging, allows the silky mid-palate to provide refreshing acidity, and dangling red currants and minerality to finish. Best served with a slight chill, allows the wine to show a beautiful varietal arc in the glass.
pH 3.74 | 14.4% abv. | 70 cases produced
Bottle price: $45
The Site:
The Cabernet Franc hails from Ukiah in Mendocino County. The site rests on on the uphill slopes of the Russian River, as you drop into the Ukiah Valley from Hopland. These loamy, well-drained soils produce gorgeous clusters from rootstock over 25 years old.. Very fortunate to work with this fruit, sustainably managed from Julie's hometown.!
The Varietal:
Cab Franc is a vigorous vine, and without thoughtful vineyard management you can have over-cropping. Not the case here: minimal groundwater, canopy and cluster maintenance, allowed these fruit sets to fully ripen, and be harvested with sugar and acidity in perfect balance.
The Wine:
Stylistically, I continue to focus on brightness and energy from the wine. By harvesting at optimum ripeness, we are fortunate to make this wine with no additives, extracting color with two manual punchdowns per day and pressing when completely dry. We then barreled down to neutral French oak for 14 months before bottling in the Spring of 2018.
The Label:
The illustration on our NEWBERRY label is by Napa artist/designer/flower-trucker Andrea Jalaty; an ink/watercolor interpretation of a grape stem cross-section viewed through a light micrograph.
The Cabernet Franc hails from Ukiah in Mendocino County. The site rests on on the uphill slopes of the Russian River, as you drop into the Ukiah Valley from Hopland. These loamy, well-drained soils produce gorgeous clusters from rootstock over 25 years old.. Very fortunate to work with this fruit, sustainably managed from Julie's hometown.!
The Varietal:
Cab Franc is a vigorous vine, and without thoughtful vineyard management you can have over-cropping. Not the case here: minimal groundwater, canopy and cluster maintenance, allowed these fruit sets to fully ripen, and be harvested with sugar and acidity in perfect balance.
The Wine:
Stylistically, I continue to focus on brightness and energy from the wine. By harvesting at optimum ripeness, we are fortunate to make this wine with no additives, extracting color with two manual punchdowns per day and pressing when completely dry. We then barreled down to neutral French oak for 14 months before bottling in the Spring of 2018.
The Label:
The illustration on our NEWBERRY label is by Napa artist/designer/flower-trucker Andrea Jalaty; an ink/watercolor interpretation of a grape stem cross-section viewed through a light micrograph.