Community Tasting Note

Sunday, August 30, 2020 - It has been a long time since I had a Paleo and since I wanted to explore various Tuscan Cabernet Franc wines it seemed a good idea to have a bottle. It proved to be an excellent idea!

We opened the bottle about 4 hours ahead of dinner and it was consumed over about 2 hours. When I tasted it after popping the cork it was a bit muted and alcoholic. Around dinner time it had opened up beautifully.

Deep ruby color. Full aromas of blueberry, some cherry and hints of eucalytus, sandalwood and red licorice. Full bodied with smooth mouth coating tannins and balanced acidity. The finish is very long and fresh troughout.
Very seductive wine to drink now, if given time to breathe. I believe it might develop a bit more complexity in 3-5 years but it doesn't have the structure for the real long haul. Althoug for modern wines 10+ years is kind of long haul already....

I’d say: drink now (with some good breathing time) to 2030.

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Comment posted by srh:

8/30/2020 2:11:00 PM - KUDOS for your time & effort in composing/entering this VERY detailed TN, your emphasis upon giving it PLENTY of air time being a reminder for when we open our 1st/2! :) [BTW, *should* you be interested, I've entered specific info for this vintage, including acclaim, which can be accessed via the CellarTracker Article link (lower lft)].
Comment posted by Jochems:

8/31/2020 12:31:00 AM - @srh: thanks for the kind remarks!

The notes added in the story are quite useful, I'm exploring Tuscan Cabernet Franc and anything I can learn about the background is much appreciated.

Also the scoring by various sources is interesting. I've stopped reading most of the magazines/sites several years ago. I used to follow JS closely many years ago but couldn't always agree with his tenancy for dense and bold. I think this Paleo is a great wine, but lacks the refinement that I would always want to see in a 95+ wine.
Comment posted by srh:

8/31/2020 1:46:00 PM - "I've stopped reading most of the magazines/sites several years ago. I used to follow JS closely many years ago but couldn't always agree with his tenancy for dense and bold." While a dearth of acclaim doesn't necessarily mean much, I believe numerous + reviews/contest results indicate a wine is at least reasonably well done. Most of the info I post comes from various vendors on wine-searcher, though I do subscribe to Jancis Robinson, Decanter, & drinkrhone.com as they're rather infrequently cited by U.S. vendors.
As for "JS" I've noted he'll often have awarded THE highest score of the lot [Dunnuck commonly nipping @ his heels ;) ], + in addition to his predilection for "dense & bold" [true of many of the "pros", I'd say :( ], it seems like I'm often SHOCKED that his publication says wines are "ready" that I & others feel aren't even CLOSE! However, I chalk that & his relatively "high" scores up to the fact that most producers/consumers WANT high scores & "ready to drink" wines -- even IF that means viewing the product through blinders. :(
Comment posted by srh:

9/4/2020 4:01:00 PM - Though a bit dated, I thought the ff'ing painted an interesting portrait of C.F. worldwide: https://enobytes.com/2018/04/24/cabernet-franc-report/
Comment posted by srh:

6/16/2021 4:31:00 PM - SHOULD you be interested, I’ve uploaded info for this vintage which you can peruse at your leisure. 😉
Comment posted by Jochems:

12/14/2021 12:10:00 AM - Keep them coming!
Comment posted by srh:

12/14/2021 11:03:00 AM - TY... 😊 , & I certainly HOPE to... 😉