Vinnez – May 2010

The Grapes Turning to Wine

Much has happended in the last month. When I left Mendoza on April 5th there was more than five tons of grapes on the vines waiting for the pickers to come through. The next day the Malbec was picked, sorted, and quickly put in a stainless steel tank for stabilization and then fermentation. Since then the Syrah, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon all were picked and went through the same process in their journey to the bottle.
 
Due to the high quality of the grapes we decided the wine could be enhanced by exposure to the highest quality French oak.  Therefore, we purchased Seguin Moreau medium toast barrels to coax the wine to its maximum quality. Now comes the hard part. We have to wait for several months as the wine evolves and the oak impacts the process.
 
My colleague Bryan Driscoll, a member of the Vines of Mendoza staff, visited me last week to report on my wines. He tasted all from tank or barrel early in May. With a smile on his face he said I would be pleased. No complaints on my side for reports like that. And I know he wasn’t exaggerating. My surplus grapes, those not used to make wine this year, were immediately purchased at a premium price. Now we all know money does not lie.
 
I’m looking forward to tasting my first vintage. I hope you are too.
 
Cheers.
Sincerely,
 
Barry P. Chaiken, Proprietor
Chaiken Vineyards
info@chaikenvineyards.com

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Cabernet Franc – A Gem in the Uco Valley

Cabernet Franc is one of the major red grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire’s Chinon and in the Uco Valley in Argentina. In addition to being used in blends and produced as a varietal in Canada and the United States it is made into ice wine there.
 
Cabernet Franc is lighter than Cabernet Sauvignon, making a bright pale red wine and contributing finesse and a peppery perfume to blends with more robust grapes. Depending on growing region and style of wine, additional aromas can include tobacco, raspberry, and cassis, sometimes even violets.
 
Records of Cabernet Franc in Bordeaux go back to the end of the 18th century; it was planted in Loire long before that. DNA analysis indicates Cabernet Franc is one of two parents of Cabernet Sauvignon, a cross between it and Sauvignon Blanc.
 
Worldwide Cabernet Franc is one of the twenty most widely planted grape varieties. Plantings are found throughout Europe, in the New World, even China and Kazakhstan. In many regions, it is planted as a component of a Bordeaux-style blend such as Meritage, playing secondary role to Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. In parts of northeast Italy, Anjou-Saumur, Touraine and right bank region of Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc both plays a more prominent role in blends and is vinted as a varietal.
 
Cabernet Franc shares many of the same phenolic and aroma compounds as Cabernet Sauvignon but with some noticeable differences. Cabernet Franc tends to be more lightly pigmented and produces wines with the same level of intensity and richness. Cabernet Franc tends to have a more pronounced perfume with notes of raspberries, black currants, violets and graphite. It is often characterized by a green, vegetal strike that can range from leaves to green bell peppers. It has slightly less tannins than Cabernet Sauvignon and tends to produce a wine with a smoother mouthfeel. New World examples of Cabernet Franc tend to emphasis the fruit more and may delay harvesting the grapes to try and minimize the green leafy notes.
 
Source: Wikipedia