2023 Cabernet Sauvignon
The last few days of a vintage are an interesting time. Every varietal has been harvested, save one, and many new wines are in various stages of evolution. Vineyard and winery crews are running on fumes by this point, but buoyed by the thoughts of the last bins of the season soon being delivered to their crush pads. There is cautious optimism for those early season varietals that have already been vinified and put to bed, and hope that the stately Cabernet Sauvignon still hanging in the field will be worth the wait.
The vintage of 2023 marked the beginning of a notable three year run for both quality and yield in late-ripening Niagara reds. A perfect stretch of September weather helped stifle the mounting disease pressure caused by a humid and wetter than normal summer. It also coincided with the debut of a new Five Rows destemmer, better capable of extracting intact, whole berries from the stems. What could go wrong?
Our ripe and clean Cabernet Sauvignon were hand harvested on November 3rd and destemmed whole berry into fermenting bins. Picture a one tonne bin filled with solid, thick-skinned berries and not a stem in sight - just beautiful. Now try to picture aggressively plunging a punchdown tool into that bin to break through the surface...obviously not going to happen!
The first few "punchdowns" involved hip waders and some tense moments standing atop a solid cap of Cabernet Sauvignon berries, wondering if I had made a huge mistake by not partially crushing these berries to release some juice to get the fermentation started. Thankfully, the problem took care of itself after a few days when the heat and CO2 of spontaneous fermentation began to soften the cap naturally, releasing a little more juice into the solution with each successive punchdown. This whole process has a way of humbling you at times with reminders of its ultimate inevitability.
Following a post-fermentation extended maceration, the wine was pressed gently in a basket press, and on first taste it was clear that the inclusion of whole berries had produced the desired effect on the tannins. This would become even more pronounced over the next two years in barrel.
The end result is a 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon that is well-structured with palate-pleasing tannins and a maturity beyond its years. Aromas include wild blackberry, dark cherry, blackcurrant jam, vanilla and faint black olive. It is an approachable wine that should age gracefully thanks to the requisite amount of balancing acidity. Cellaring recommendation 2027-2035.