Cabernet Franc

Wild Oak Vineyard

Sonoma Valley

Tasting Notes

This medium-bodied red wine touts a surprisingly bright bouquet of fresh cranberry and sweet-leaf tobacco. A sultry structure builds to a tart pop of bing cherry, backed by earthy licorice notes and candied apple. Excellent sun exposure has developed a bright berry-like acidity and a delicate herbaceousness in the long finish.

Vintage Notes

2018 provided an ideal climate allowing time for the grapes to ripen to their optimum flavor structure. The year presented a fairly mild growing season with few heat spikes, inspiring winemakers to push harvest back a few weeks. This longer time on the vine was great for grapes and the mild temperatures kept the fruit from over-ripening. More than an inch of rain fell in early October in many locations, but there was little impact on the quality of the fruit. 2018 could be remembered as one of the longest and most desirable seasons in years, producing exceptional quality grapes throughout Sonoma County.

Vineyard Notes

The Sonoma Valley, a historic wine-growing region, is ideally suited for growing high quality wine grapes including Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. We source all three varieties from our Certified Sustainable Wild Oak Estate Vineyard, located at the foot of the Mayacamas Mountains in the heart of the valley. The area’s warm summer days are tempered by cool, breezy evenings allowing the grapes to develop complex flavors while retaining acidity. The vineyard property is also the site of the Winery and Tasting Room.

Winemaker Notes

All grapes are gently de-stemmed before cold-soaking for two days to extract optimal color and flavor. the fruit is fermented in separate lots, allowing each lot to be individually and distinctly crafted before being aged in French oak barrels, 54% new. The wine is kept 15 months in barrel before final blending.