Gridley Family Cellars
2004 Cabernet Franc(Napa Valley)
Andy Gridley came home one day from his job as national sales manager for a small Napa winery and told his wife Susan he wanted to make wine – both had taken enology courses at Fresno State. She agreed, but only if it were the lesser known of the Bordeaux varietals, Cabernet Franc. “Cabernet franc has lovely fruit characteristics with an amazing perfume. It's got weight and roundness with a terrific sexy quality,” says Susan, whose first wine memory was an old "family" Cabernet Franc from a Napa Valley producer.
Fortuitously, a few weeks later a college friend of Andy’s offered to split his share of Cabernet Franc from the Saviez Vineyard on the border of Calistoga and St. Helena. For this inaugural release they crushed 2.5 tons of fruit from Saviez and 2 tons from the Lynch Vineyard, fermenting the lots separately. Lynch Vineyard is located in the eastern part of Napa County. It tends to ripen about three weeks later and has a more rustic fruit character that complements the Saviez fruit. The results – a warm, round, and inviting wine deeply flavored with notes of sweet cherry, earth, forest, vanilla, mocha, and caramel. Delicious with roasted pork tenderloin.
Reviewed September 14, 2006 by Catherine Fallis.
The Wine
Winery: Gridley Family Cellars |
The ReviewerFounder and President of Planet Grape LLC, a company committed to bringing the joy of wine, food, and good living into the lives of everyday people, Catherine is creator of the “grape goddess guides to good living,” a series of books, television presentations, seminars, and e-learning programs. The fifth woman in the world to become a Master Sommelier, grape goddess Catherine Fallis is still very much down-to-earth. |