Napa Valley Wines
2013 YoungInglewood Right Bank Blend – A Birthday Treat!
Photo from YoungInglewood Website
The Winery
This small winery is best-known for their Cabernet Sauvignon and “Bordeaux blends”, as they are situated on historic vineyard land in St. Helena, California. However, they’ve got a passion for several white wines like Chardonnay, Vin Clair and a rare Aligoté that is oak aged. One of the most enjoyable aspects of visiting YoungInglewood Winery is not just the tasting of exquisite wines, but partaking in intelligent, purposed and thoughtful discussion of wine.
To begin with, the owners Jim and Jacky Young met while in college and shared a passion/drive with wine. Jim and Jacky bought a historic piece of land in southern St Helena and have today all five Bordeaux varietals planted. It is truly a family winery with Jim handling the operations and Jacky and son Scott, being the co-winemakers on property. Their daughter, Mary helps in the operations as well as providing an occasional flute recital.
Their time spent in Europe cultivated a real sense of old-world wines and that is exactly how they construct both their red and white wines. They like to describe themselves as presenting “old world non-interventionist” winemaking techniques. It surely shows in their incredible wines.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
I seldom talk about wine labels but theirs is the exception. This 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.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
You can read previous stories:
https://californiawinesandwineries.com/2016/02/16/younginglewood/
https://californiawinesandwineries.com/2021/04/06/younginglewood-2014-malbec-and-portuguese-sausage/
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Pulled this bottle out of the cellar the other night to enjoy watching a movie on my birthday. While the movie was entertaining (Made in Italy on Amazon), the wine shined from the ten years wait! The wine is from their estate fruit. Barreling was 100% French oak with 40% being new barrels and aged 21 months. The blend used 86% Cabernet Franc and 14% Cabernet Sauvignon and only 136 cases produced. It came in at 14.5% alcohol level. Each year the percentage mix and grapes are varied based on the winemaker and what nature provides.
On the eyes an alluring and dark concoction with red and purple highlights with medium to medium-heavy viscosity. On the nose aromatics of raspberries and dark fruits. On the palate, this is one of the quintessential Cabernet Franc’s with hints of blackberries, strawberries and only a faint trace of pyrazines. The finish provided silky and rounded tannins, a soft earthiness. Truly a remarkable and elegant Cabernet Franc. The current vintage is 2022 and it retails for $130/bottle.
No food and wine pairing as we were still recovering from a large lunch compliments of my sister!
This wine will make my list for Best Wines Tasted in 2026 for sure. Treat yourself to a visit to YoungInglewood Winery as each wine is purposed and handcrafted. It was indeed a beautiful birthday treat!
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly
2014 Detert Family Vineyards Cabernet Franc, Always a Brouhaha
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The Winery
Those familiar with Detert Family Vineyards know that Detert is an established winery. W.F. Detert came to the US in 1866. He operated a gold mine in Jackson, sold it and in 1912 he owned 22,000 acres in Guenoc Ranch in Lake County as well as other ranches/gold mines in Amador Placer and El Dorado Counties. W.F. died in 1929 and it was managed by his son Richard Detert who died in 1951. Tom Garrett, one of the current owners, great-grandmother, Hedwig Detert, sold the Guenoc Ranch and purchased 50 acres of the To Kalon Vineyard from Martin Stelling estate in Oakville in 1954. That is when the Detert Vineyard was named. Today it is known as one of the most prestigious vineyards in all of Napa Valley. In 1966 Detert Vineyards started selling their grapes to Robert Mondavi. For many years Robert used Detert Family Vineyards Cabernet Franc for blending. Today the owners of Detert are all great grandsons of Hedwig Detert: Tom Garrett, John Garrett and Bill Cover. Their first commercial wines were Cabernet Franc (2000) and Cabernet Sauvignon (2002).
The Winemaker
Tom Garrett is the winemaker for the Detert Family Vineyards. Tom started in 1999 at Turley Wine Cellars and then over the next 15 years worked at various wineries. The list shows some exceptional wineries such as Joseph Phelps, Robert Mondavi and Revana Family Vineyards. Tom focused his time with Detert and his other winery Dakota Shy. Tom is well known and perhaps one of the most congenial and pleasant people in Napa Valley. Over the fifteen years I have known Tom he is always flexible and available to assist, even dropping off wine at another winery for me on more than one occasion to pick up!
The Wine
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Enjoyed this wine from the cellar last week being their 2014 Cabernet Franc. The extremely dark and lush color and medium-heavy viscosity entice one to sip and taste. On the nose black cherries engulfed the olfactory senses. On the palate, soft vanilla pipe tobacco, black pepper contrast with chocolate flavors. The finish was long and extremely enjoyable. This is a quality Cabernet Franc and something special to participate in drinking. Even being 12 years old, (8 years in the cellar), it was bright with fruit, well-structured with tannins and layers of enjoyment. The current allocated release of their 300 cases is the 2023 Cabernet Franc which sells for $125.
The 2014 Cabernet Franc will make my “Best Wines of The Year List” being tasted for 2026. I know this trend will continue.
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly
2007 Larkmead Vineyards Firebelle Blend – With a Simple Summertime Meal
Background
As the weather took a major upturn in heat, we just wanted a nice enjoyable red wine to go with a light meal and sip throughout the evening. Pulled this 2007 Larkmead Firebelle and it worked out perfectly.
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Larkmead has been a long time favorite as former members of their wine club and still is one of my prized wines. First on the eyes, a deep ruby and brick coloring and medium viscosity. On the nose, it is very aromatic with flavors bouncing about with the three varieties in the blend of Merlot (62%), Cabernet Sauvignon (29%) and Malbec (9%). Intense floral and fruit elements waft into the senses. Once on the palate, black cherry is dominant with textured intriguing surprises including mocha. At the finish, the soft and cuddling Merlot is initially perceived then giving way to rounded tannins for a layered long-lasting finish.
The 2007 was with estate grown fruit and aged 17 months in 52% new French oak barrels. It came in at 14.5% alcohol and was initially rated 93 points by Robert Parker. The current vintage is about to be released at $100/bottle and pre-orders are being taken per their website.
The Food and Wine Pairing – “Food without wine is a corpse; wine without food is a ghost. United and well matched, they are as body and soul: living partners” – Andre Simon
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The dinner this evening was a spicy sausage and broccoli pasta dish. Ingredients included olive oil, sliced garlic cloves, Flatiron Dark & Smoky peppers, smoked turkey sausage, broccoli florets, sliced mushrooms, bow tie pastas, kosher salt and black pepper. Topped off with fresh shredded Parmesan cheese. The wine was mellow enough with the Merlot portion so as not to overpower the dish and the Malbec component in the wine, along with peppers, brought out the smoky nuances. A very good and light food and wine pairing.
The Winery
Photo from Larkmead Vineyards website
Larkmead Vineyards is a long-established winery in Napa Valley. Originally founded in 1895, incorporated 115-acre estate under the stewardship of the Solari-Baker family. Andy Smith, winemaker for Larkmead Vineyards for this vintage, has consistently produced exquisite and age worthy wines for years. We were wine club members for many years. Today winemaker Avery Heelan oversees bringing their wines to market but have not tasted her recent vintages.
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly
2010 Buccella Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley – Unwrapping the Last Bottle
(Photo ©Michael Kelly)
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
(Photo ©Michael Kelly)
2010 Buccella is a Cabernet Sauvignon (86%) with Malbec 6%, Petit Verdot 3%, Merlot 3% and Cabernet Franc 2%. Robert Parker rated this wine at 95 points a few years back. I acquired it eleven years ago and it has been resting with “its brothers” very quietly in the cellar. On the eyes this is a deep black color and medium-full viscosity. The fragrance is black cherry and blueberry. On the palate, it opens to express both the blueberry and cherry with distinction. Secondary flavors of vanilla and dark fruits abound. Key to this wine is the finish with soft and smooth silky tannins, this is not your normal big and sharp Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Rather than pick you up and slap you upside the head, this comes and caresses and warms you like a comforter next to a fireplace in winter. The style is as unique as its label. Absolutely one of my top twenty wines. Hard to find a 2010 rated 95 points by Robert Parker and price ranges from $185 to $225. The current release is their 2020 vintage. The wine comes in at 14.5% alcohol.
Unfortunately, this was my last bottle of Buccella!
The Food and Wine Pairing – “Food without wine is a corpse; wine without food is a ghost. United and well matched, they are as body and soul: living partners” – Andre Simon
(Photo ©Michael Kelly)
Pulled this bottle out of the cellar to pair with freshly cut 2” filet mignon steaks purchased at Swingle Meat Market in Jackson. Seasoned, seared and BBQ’ed at 1500° on the grill to a beautiful medium rare finish. Served with a dollop of Blue cheese crumbles on top. Accompanied by fresh snap peas sauteed with garlic, a small Yukon Gold potato and a fresh salad with cooked bacon, cherry tomatoes and blue cheese. A perfect pairing for this tender filet mignon that was easily cut with a butter knife! The smooth tannins were sufficient to cut through the meat, and the taste was remarkable with both the meat and Blue cheese. This was the best tasting filet mignon in recent memory.
This was the first time we stopped by Swingle Meat Company, and we will most certainly be stopping regularly going forward. Great beef and other products are both freshly cut while you wait or some are frozen. They are a family-owned business and have been in business since 1945.
The Winery
Buccella is a small artisan and boutique winery committed to making limited quantities of luxury wines. They are in the southern area of Napa with fruit coming from some of the premiere vineyards in Napa Valley.
(Photo ©Michael Kelly)
It is not often a wine goes without an identifying label with the winery name on the front. Their name and information being located on the back of the bottle. Collectors know that Buccella wines have this identifiable wax logo stamped on the bottle. It is a contemporary interpretation of a traditional silver tastevin cup used for tasting in Bordeaux and other areas. This along with the name “bucella”, a Latin word meaning mouthful, provides a perfect representation of this exquisite wine. The winery was founded in 2002 by Bill Deem and his wife Alicia who are still actively involved in the business.
The Winemaker & Consultant
The wine was made by Rebekah Wineburg who was the winemaker there from 2009-2015. Renowned winemaker Celia Welch was the consulting winemaker for 3 years at Buccella. Rebekah is now the winemaker at Quintessa and owner/winemaker at Post and Vine Wines. The current winemaker at Buccella is Bradley Schroeder
Sláinte,
Michael
Super Bowl Weekend – Opened the MVP 2008 Casa Piena Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Background
Casa Piena is the winery founded by Carmen Policy who served as President and CEO of the San Francisco 49’ers from 1991 to 1997. Carmen was involved since 1981 , being friends with Eddie DeBarolo Jr in the executive leadership of the SF 49’ers. His legacy was instrumental in all five of the 49’ers Super Bowl winning teams.
Carmen and his wife lived in San Francisco permanently in 1991. Then later returned to Ohio for five years as President, CEO and part owner of the Cleveland Browns. They wanted to return to San Francisco and managed to move back in 2004. Seeking a change after twenty-five years in professional sports, then they decided to move to Napa Valley. Here they acquired the property in 2003 and planted 10 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc in 2003. The first vintage produced was 2006.
Casa Piena translates to “full house” in Italian and was chosen to honor his five children.
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
I originally purchased this wine in 2011 from a friend in Napa Valley who was selling wine for Carmen. Carmen hired renown winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown to produce the wines from his estate vineyard. The current vintage is 2023 and sells for $150/bottle.
First on the eyes a deep ruby and purple coloring with medium-heavy viscosity. Looking at the wine in the glass there is an opulent declaration that it is special. On the nose, fruits of blackberries and black cherries waft delightfully into the senses with floral notes. Once on the palate, this wine shows the “Super Bowl” pedigree of the fruits, along with blueberries and a lovely sweet vanilla pipe tobacco. Finally, at the finish, dusty earth traits combined with luxurious smooth and velvety tannins. The softness of the tannins was like wrapping up in front of the fireplace on a cold evening in a blanket, surrounding each sip.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The initial assessment was rated 94 points and mentioned to drink before 2015. While it may have lost a little in the tannin structure, it was still an enjoyable bottle. The wine was originally aged 20 months in 80% new French oak and 100% Cabernet Sauvignon and came in at 14.7% alcohol.
The wine was double decanted and put back in the original bottle and allowed to breathe for two hours. This wine will make my annual list of Best Wines Tasted for 2026. Unfortunately, it was the last bottle in the cellar. I would like to taste a more current vintage as reports have stated the vineyard has matured to make some of the best grapes in Napa Valley.
The Food and Wine Pairing – “Food without wine is a corpse; wine without food is a ghost. United and well matched, they are as body and soul: living partners” – Andre Simon
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Pulled this wine this weekend in lieu of the Super Bowl. While the 49’ers, our team of choice, did not make the Super Bowl, thought it appropriate to enjoy this wine. Tonight’s menu was a new dish called Skirt Steak Marinade with Chimichurri Sauce. The ingredients for the marinade were olive oil, fresh squeezed orange juice, fresh squeezed lime juice, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, red wine vinegar, minced garlic, skirt steak with kosher salt and pepper to taste. The meat was allowed to marinate for 7 hours.
For the Chimichurri sauce, which was a new recipe and divine, the ingredients included fresh parsley, fresh cilantro, olive oil, diced onion, minced garlic, fresh lime juice, red wine vinegar, crushed red peppers kosher salt and black pepper. All the ingredients were blended in a food processor to form a thick sauce that was drizzled on the meat slices on the dish.
The meat was seared on the barbeque at 1500 degrees for about 4-5 minutes on each side.
Accompanied by cauliflower rice with onions and a modicum of Chimichurri sauce mixed in and fresh sauteed string beans in olive oil and garlic.
While we absolutely enjoyed the marinade and Chimichurri sauce immensely, we were a bit disappointed in the skirt steak toughness. We will endeavor the same recipe next time but substitute the meat with flank steak.
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly
2022 ITER Cellars Sauvignon Blanc – A Journey to New Beginnings
Photo from ITER Cellars
Background
While traveling during the holiday season visiting family, our daughter and son-in-law have a family tradition of Chinese food on Christmas Eve. While I brought some wines for Christmas dinner to be served with prime rib, I did not bring a good wine to pair with Chinese food. So off we drove to a local wine store chain and picked up this bottle for dinner. This wine was recommended by of the managers who assisted me. I had never heard of ITER Cellars but decided to go with his recommendation.
The Winery
The name Iter from the Latin primarily means “journey, road, path or passage”. This description is on the back of the bottle.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
As previously mentioned, this wine was recommended to me without knowing any background on the winery. As it turns out, it is a family run business with the owners being Stefano Migotto and Valentina Guolo. Fior di Sole (flower of the sun) is an operated wine company located in the heart of Napa Valley, producing an array of wines from Napa and throughout California.
The company is committed to minimizing their impact on the environment and promoting sustainable practices. Their bottling line facility is CCOF (California Certified Organic Farmers). I will be exploring what other aspects of their operations are CCOF as this is a noteworthy achievement.
This is a very large-scale operation with forty-one brands under the Fior di Sole ownership. Wine labels for example include Four Stars, Anthony Rami Family Winery, Ancient Gate Cellars, Harris Parker, Long Barn, etc. Their warehouse for finish goods has a capacity of 1.1 million cases! Their operation includes in-house filtration, quality control and laboratory services. Picking up a quick bottle of wine has lead to uncovering a vast enterprise. Look forward to understanding and perhaps tasting some of their other wines. Iter does appear to be a long path to be discovered.
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo from ITER Cellars
A clean and glistening light golden color in the glass. On the nose, lemon grass and grapefruit aromas are dominant. On the palate a combination of citrus primarily of lemon and bountiful herbaceous flavors. It is crisp and clean providing a lovely finish with a hint of minerality. Their winemaker states that their Sauvignon Blanc “tastes like it feels to walk through a meadow on a dewy spring morning”.
The wine goes for a modest $13/bottle on retail shelves and is a remarkable bargain!
The Food and Wine Pairing – “Food without wine is a corpse; wine without food is a ghost. United and well matched, they are as body and soul: living partners” – Andre Simon
Photo ©Michael Kelly
One of the more difficult meals to pair a wine with is Chinese as generally so many different assortments of dishes are ordered to please a group. Tonight was no exception with pork fried rice, chicken fried rice, pot stickers, lemon chicken, honey walnut prawns, orange chicken, beef broccoli, Mongolian beef, and chow Mein. I am sure a few others escaped my memory!
Photo ©Michael Kelly
I have generally gone with Sauvignon Blanc as it tends to go with many Chinese dishes. As you can see a lot of delicious dishes were ordered for the 17 people attending Christmas Eve dinner (not all foods are shown)!
Sláinte,
Michael
2010 Trespass Vineyard Escapade Continues to Impress
The Winery
Photo from Trespass website
Trespass Vineyard is in St Helena at the base of Spring Mountain and owned by Don and Dana Gallagher. They have meticulously worked on their 5-acre vineyard to produce some of the most exquisite wines. Well known winemaker Kirk Venge, along with Don & Dana Gallagher, collaborate in the winemaking process Currently they produce Rendezvous (blend), Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Mayhem (blend). In my opinion, they are in the top twenty-five wineries making Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa Valley. When blended, they achieve high accolades for their wines. For the last ten years, at least one has made my Annual List of Best Wines Tasted for the year.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
As an aside to the wine itself, two items have always caught my attention. First it is the label which is a beautiful watercolor of the vineyard at the base of Spring Mountain in Saint Helena. The second item is the statement on the back of the bottle which reads “Now and again one comes across a place so extraordinary it captures the imagination, yet you are not allowed to enter. We invite you to TRESPASS”. A very nice play on the wording with a picture on the front of the bottle
The Wine – “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
2010 was their inaugural vintage of Escapade. It was comprised of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Cabernet Franc. It was aged for 22 months in 100% new French oak barrels. Only 95 cases were produced and was bottled unfiltered and unrefined. I filtered it twice before serving and you can see why. The filter had to be cleaned twice to complete the bottle process as it clogged up twice.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
First on the eyes a very deep and brooding reddish/purple coloring. Blackberries and blueberries waft these delightful aromas to the senses. On the palate the fruits with dark cherry and the co-mingled Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc provided a well-balanced, bold and well-structured sipping experience. The astonishing finish provided velvety tannins with a long-lasting vanilla conclusion. This was getting close to the end of its longevity.
Today the Escapade has changed names to be their Rendezvous with the 2021 vintage being the current release. The percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc change year to year. It is listed at $150/bottle on their website.
This wine will make my Annual Best Wines Tasted in the Year for 2025, which comes out in December each year.
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly
https://californiawinesandwineries.com
https://trespassvineyard.com
Rombauer Wine Dinner at Verona18 – With a Few Nice Surprises!
Photo ©Michael Kelly
It had been almost twenty years since I had a full tasting experience of Rombauer wines, so when and our local clubhouse restaurant, Verona18 and Rombauer held this event thought it was about time. Rachael Akerley from Rombauer in Plymouth conducted the wine portion of the event for about fifty attendees.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Chef Jaime Alderete prepared the exquisite dinner for the evening. The evening started off with a Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho with herb oil as a shooter. This was the first surprise being paired with a 2024 Rombauer Sauvignon Blanc. Conventional thinking is that “tomato-based foods” usually trend toward high acid lighter red wines. The shooter was heavenly sent and the pairing with the wine was strikingly delightful. It generally got the best reviews for the evening for a wine and wine/food pairing from the crowd!
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Next up a Sicilian-style Tuna Carpaccio with a garlicky herb dressing. Again the food was top notch and Rombauer 2023 Chardonnay, perhaps not to my likely, is still the number one selling Chardonnay in the USA and the number one Chardonnay for restaurants in the USA. The food and wine pairing was good but I kept thinking the Sauvignon Blanc would have tasted even better with the food.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Next up, and another surprise, was the Squash Ravioli of sage brown butter sauce, diced squash and tomato. The surprise was the taste of this light and tasty ravioli with a little sweetness. This was paired with their 2023 Pinot Noir from Santa Lucia Highlands from the Central Coast of California. The pairing with the Pinot Noir again for me did not seem to have enough weight to pair with the Pinot Noir. By the way for all the pairings, whether good or great, there wasn’t any wine left in the glasses!
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Before the main entrée was served, an intermezzo refreshment with Prosecco and lime/orange sherbert as both a palate cleaner as well as to stimulate the appetite.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The main entrée was served up and a unique Surf & Turf of filet mignon, sauteed shrimp & lobster, with browned white wine and shallot cream sauce. The sauce was tasty and perfectly suited for both seafood and beef. This was another surprise of the sauce being well suited for both on the same plate. The beef was served medium rare and very tender.
The wine being paired was the Rombauer 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon with pronounced cherry, oak and medium tannins. This was a solid pairing with the filet, but the lobster and shrimp were left out in the cold with the Cabernet Sauvignon not making it a good pairing. Not to sound like a broken record but believe having two glasses to taste with the entrée would have been spot on with the Cabernet Sauvignon caressing the filet and Sauvignon Blanc with its citrus and passion fruit notes complementing the lobster and shrimp. Accompanied by fresh string beans and potatoes.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Last up was another surprise of Poached Pear with Gorgonzola dolci, tuile, chocolate mousse. This was paired with two Rombauer wines: 2022 Zinfandel and 2022 Zinfandel, Twin Rivers from El Dorado. Both wines were good with dessert and lots of discussion on which of the two wines went best with the desserts.
Video ©Michael Kelly
The crowd was very appreciative of Rombauer and Verona18 hosting the event and Jaime preparing such a wonderful meal to be enjoyed.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Picture of Rachael Akerley of Rombauer who conducted the tasting.
and
And Executive Chef Jaime Aderete who prepared each wonderful and delicious dishes for the evening.
A couple of us the following afternoon drove to Plymouth to a tasting with Rachael. We were treated to several reserve, older vintages and special wines which were all scrumptous. Here are just a few:
Photo ©Michael Kelly
and
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Would encourage everyone who has only tasted their regular lineup and have an opinion on Rombauer to try their “higher end” lineup for a comparison. You will be surprised!
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly
Two Fun Instagram Reels
I recently have done two wine stories but these two were especially fun to put together. For those who aren’t on Instagram or don’t follow me there, thought It would be nice to put the link on the website!
First is the one on Oakville East “Franc ‘N Stern” ( a play on Elliot’s last name Stern) with his 2016 Cabernet Franc. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DPUKE_pCTf7/?igsh=NGx3dDIxN2lrem1z
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The second on is on Wood Family Vineyards and their upcoming new release of “Against the Grain” Bourbon barrel aged wine. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DPKhly9AYc7/?igsh=NXE3ZXduMDZya3Jt
Photo ©Michael Kelly
You can generally find after each story on the website an Instagram Reel.
Enjoy and Sláinte,
Michael Kelly
2016 Oakville East “Franc ‘n Stern” Cabernet Franc Perfect for October (and anytime)!
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The Winery
Elliot Stern Pouring at the 5th International Cabernet Franc Wine Stroll Photo ©Michael Kelly
The name Franc ‘N Stern is intriguing as is Elliot Stern, owner, who has called his Cabernet Franc, Franc ‘N Stern since the introduction. I met Elliot many, many years ago and went through his lineup of wines at his kitchen table. I immediately enjoyed his Cabernet Sauvignon and the Cabernet Franc. I have always kept both in the cellar as “trophy wines”. The Franc ‘N Stern Cab Franc is an easily remembered name and his wine notes are whimsical and play on the “Frankenstein” theme. His notes alone are price worthy. Currently besides their Cabernet Franc, he produces two distinct Cabernet Sauvignons (Exposure and Double H Ranch) and a red wine blend. He has previously scored 94 points from Wine Enthusiast for his Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon Exposure. Marie-Laure Ammons, originally from France is the head winemaker at Oakville East.
The Wine “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
The wine is extremely dark purple and magenta colored with crimson red hues. On the nose, dark fruits, violets, soft pipe tobacco, dark chocolate and fresh ground black pepper. On the palate, spices, including reclusive pyrazines (bell pepper taste), along with blackberries swarm the mouth with enticing and vibrant flavors. Rounded velvety tannins provide a medium long finish. With Marie-Laure coming from France, this is a very smooth wine combining both the old world and new world Cabernet Franc wine making skills.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
This wine is 90% Cabernet Franc and adds 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. As Elliot states in his humorous notes, “IT’S ALIVE, IT’S ALIVE!! This wine retails for $100 and is worth every penny. This wine will make my annual list of Best Wines Tasted for calendar year 2025.
Sláinte,
Michael Kelly