2013 YoungInglewood Cabernet Franc – Showing the Art of Funambulism
The Winery
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Opened one of our prized Napa Cabernet Franc’s last night. YoungInglewood is one of my top ten Cabernet Franc wines of Napa Valley. It is a small family winery located 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.
Attended a wine release event last weekend and enjoyed tasting their 2023 Vin Clair Rosé, 2022 Aligoté, 2022 Linda Vista Chardonnay, 2021 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, 2021 Estate Cabernet Franc, 2022 Cuvee Edie Pinot Noir, 2020 Petit Verdot and 2020 Malbec.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The day was complete with a delicious Paella served by Chef Gary Penir and listening to music on the patio from The Gypsy Trio.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The Youngs, Jim & Jacky had 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/ .
Photo ©Michael Kelly
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 – the parallelism between showing how the tightrope walker reaching a safe destination and the winemaker balancing so many facets of the production 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! Funambulism is the art of tightrope walking.
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
This 2013 Cabernet Franc 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 2021 and goes for $150/bottle.
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 and 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