2013 Boisseau Red
Palate
Enters brooding, then herbal. Finishes with long gripping tannins and a bit of fresh acidity.
Aromas
Dark fruit, spicy.
Food Pairings
Rare duck breast, curried lamb, and ribeye steaks.
Vineyard
Boisseau Vineyard, Warren Co. is located on a bluff above Front Royal in the Shenandoah Valley at an elevation of 600 feet. The vineyard is west facing on light, deep, well-drained loam soils. The vines were planted in 2000 and are trained on cordon/VSP trellising.
Vintage
2013 was a difficult growing season that metamorphosed into a fabulous fall harvest. Bud break was very late. Most of the summer was wet, resulting in unruly vegetative growth and extra vineyard work. August continued this pattern until the last week when the weather broke.
Every vintage has its personality. Much like raising children, some vintages are easy, but most are not. Wet vintages require more intervention and guidance as the vines, through no fault of their own, take on a bit of a wild streak. Ample water availability during the growing season makes vines unruly, like kids fed too much sugary junk food. This was the case for the growing season of 2013. Until September.
September defines the quality and style of the wine. The bad behavior of the previous six months can be easily forgiven and forgotten if September is bright and sunny. September 2013 rewarded us for all our diligence during the growing season. The wild child of summer finally found a niche and thrived into early adulthood. With the exception of one very brief rain shower, we had no rain in September. This is quite remarkable in the mid Atlantic. In autumn, dusty gravel roads and brown grass gladden the winemaker’s heart. Days were warm and sunny; nights were very cool.
Merlot and Cabernet Franc were able to take full advantage of September’s gift, ripening fully before the rains that began on October 10. With the exception of early ripening Boisseau Vineyard (already picked), the Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot had to be rushed in before the rains did too much damage. The resulting red wines have fresh acidity and a good core. They will be good candidates for aging.
Winemaking
This is a selection of the best vineyard blocks of Boisseau Vineyard. Petit Verdot was the star in 2013. We hand sort before destemming and then again afterwards to remove pink berries and stem pieces. 10% bleed. Pumped over averaging two times per day, with some punch downs later in fermentation. Post fermentation macerations make for a total cuvaison of 18 to 22 days. Malo in barrels. The wine was aged in new (20%) and slightly used French oak barrels for 21 months. Bottled August 2015. 44% Petit Verdot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc. Drink through 2021. 169 cases produced. 14.8% alcohol.
Linden Vineyards / Our Wines / 2013 Vintage | 2013 Boisseau Red