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Wine Details
Price:
$17.99 per bottle
Description:
First Vineyard Reserve is a full-bodied red wine, similar in style to a fine Chianti Classico, this wine is produced from a blend of Chambourcin, Norton and estate-grown Cabernet Franc grapes hand-selected on the crush pad each fall by our winemaker. The final blend is assembled and aged for 12-16 months in Kentucky-coopered American oak barrels.
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Varietal Definition
Cabernet Franc:
Cabernet Franc is an accessible, spicy, herbal, dark blue grape variety that is often compared to Cabernet Sauvignon. Cabernet Franc tends to be softer and has less tannin than Cabernet Sauvignon, although the two can be difficult to distinguish. Sometimes the French refer to Cabernets, which could mean either of the two grapes. Its typical aromas include an herbaceous and pronounced peppery nose, even in ripe fruit, and something eerily like tobacco. The Cabernet Franc ripens at an earlier stage, which gives it reason to exist in the Bordeaux area. In the Loire, where we find it a lot, it gives a clear red fresh and fruity wine.
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Chambourcin:
A french-american hybrid used to make red wines with fruity flavors and some herbaceousness. Grown in the cooler regions of Eastern U.S. and Canada. Decreasing acreages also found in Europe; due to stringent European Union rules these varieties cannot be blended with traditional varieties.
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Norton:
In 1835, Dr. Daniel Norton of Virginia developed this grape varietal that was originally known as the Virginia Seedling. Widely planted in the Midwest (where it is sometimes called Cynthiana), it has become a source of interest to East Coast vintners in recent years. It produces a dark, inky wine with flavors of plums and cherries. Horton Vineyards in Virginia is particularly interested in reviving the grape's reputation. In the South, look for Norton (or Cynthiana) from Moonrise Bay, Mountain Valley, Three Sisters, Tiger Mountain and Tennessee Valley.
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