Wine 2023 – Update #01
08 April 2023
Ideas for the fall 2023 wines are already in motion. While it may sound early, as the 2022 wines are no where near ready to bottle, I like thinking ahead.
I have a “5 year plan”, where I don’t make the same red wine within a 5 year span. That’s actually easy to do, as making different blends with the same base grape qualifies, e.g., Merlot with 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot with 10% CS and 10% Syrah, and Merlot with 10% CS and 10% Grenache are all different. But I try to vary it more than that.
In recent years I’ve made the following. Those in italics are for blending into other grapes.
| Year | Grapes / Blends |
|---|---|
| 2019 | Merlot
Malbec Zinfandel |
| 2020 | Merlot 66.7% / Bordeaux Blend 33.3%
Merlot 40% / Zinfandel 40% / Bordeaux Blend 20% Bordeaux Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot |
| 2021 | FWK Forte Super Tuscan kit
FWK Forte Merlot, Petite Sirah, Syrah kits AKA Rhone Blend |
| 2022 | Grenache
Tempranillo Rhone Blend: Mourvedre, Petite Sirah, Syrah |
For 2023 we’re planning to do a barrel each (8 lugs) of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.
For blending, we’ll buy 3 lugs total of Petit Verdot, Merlot, and possibly Malbec. I’m not adverse to swapping in Syrah or Mourvedre, although my initial thought is two Bordeaux / Meritage blends with 80%+ of either Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet Franc.
The Cabernet Franc idea comes from McGregor Vineyards in NY. Their Rob Roy Red is 50% Cabernet Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot. Our blend will be more Cabernet Franc, but I’m not adverse to using some of the Cabernet Sauvignon in the Franc. We will see ….