2013 YoungInglewood Vineyards Cabernet Franc – Aged to Perfection
The Winery
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Opened one of our prized Napa Cabernet Franc’s last night. YoungInglewood is one of my top ten Cabernet Sauvignon wines of Napa Valley. It is a small family winery in the southern edge of Saint Helena up against the western mountains in Napa Valley. YoungInglewood is a boutique winery, which has consistently produced deep and concentrated red wines.
The Young’s, Jim & Jacky had some many years in France and have purposed to make wines that reflect the traditional roots and values, with a Napa Valley twist. I had written about YoungInglewood in a previous article in 2016 in more detail. You can click on this to read their story at
https://californiawinesandwineries.com/2016/02/16/younginglewood/ .
I have been an admirer of the winery since their inception and have always stated their label of the tightrope walker represents one of the best labels – showing how the winemaker must balance so many facets of the production in order to arrive at the destination with a grand product. This includes vineyard management, canopy trimming, dropping fruit, harvesting at the precise moment to extract the perfect juice, formulating the right blend, keeping tannins and fruit in check, etc. I seldom talk about wine labels but theirs is the exception. The label is one of the simplest yet says so much about their wine with the balancing of the tightrope walker. This is a paradigm for balance in the fruit, tannins, acidity and color. A little too much of any one item, and a misstep happens. Even deeper is their aspiring sense of balance in life, starting in the vineyards with organic and sustainable practices. All of this requires the balance and finesse summed up by a tightrope walker!
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
This 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon was aged 22 months in 100% French oak, with 60% being new barrels. Only 300 cases were produced of this vintage. It is a mother/son team heading the wine making, Jacky and Scott Young, for this lush and extremely intense wine. The current release is the 2019 with only 100 cases being produced and sells for $150/bottle. The 2021 will be released in the fall 2024.
On the eyes one can only anticipate what the dense dark red and purple juice will taste like. On the nose, aromas of black cherries, raspberry engulf the olfactory senses. On the palate, vanilla, dark chocolate, clove, licorice, plum with a hint of soft lingering pipe tobacco & leather conjoin to make an expression of wine so delicious and yet graceful. The finish is smooth, integral, long and the defined tannins are present yet subdued. The structure of this wine is excellent. When finished savoring each sip you are left in amazement and awe of experiencing this wine.
Sláinte,
Michael