Score
90 points - James Suckling
Winemaking
AVA: 100% Finger Lakes
Blend: 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Cabernet Franc, 14% Merlot
Cooperage: Aged for 7 months in neutral French oak barrels.
Hand Harvested: 10/9 – 10/28/2021
Harvest Brix: 22.0°-24.0°
Hand Sorted
ABV: 13.0%
TA: 6.2 g/L
pH: 3.69
Residual Sugar: 0.2%
Unfined
Bottled: 5/24/2022
Cases Produced: 2900
Drink Window: Drink now – 2024 - 2028
Tasting Notes
Our 2021 MC² transports us to an Italian kitchen, homemade spaghetti sauce (the recipe passed from ancestor to ancestor) simmering on the stovetop. The nose and palate harken the mind to dried herbs and a fresh garden, but not in the way one would usually imagine.
The expected berry notes differ from the usual and instead give the impression of heirloom tomatoes like Black Cherry (the tomato kind), Mr. Stripey and the Chocolate Stripe as well as the beloved hybrid Sungold, with just a flirt of actual black cherries as well. Sips conjure oregano, black pepper, thyme, and black currant, rubbing elbows with those luscious tomatoes and cherries. Tannins satisfy our desire for grip while leaving us wanting more.
Overall, another feather in the cap of our much-loved MC² collection.
Serve at: 55° - 60°f
Vintage Notes
Winter of 2021 gave us some surprisingly warm days and just enough snow to be protective when the temperatures dipped low. Early spring was lovely - sunny and mostly dry with undisturbed flowering and fruit set. Beginning in June, the summer rains arrived and persisted through August. Once into September and more so in October, we were blessed with warm and dry weather, allowing us to round out our harvest season in good conditions. The abundant moisture during the summer months resulted in a smaller crop but yielded very fruit-driven and expressive reds and sparkling and bright and refreshing whites and rosés
