Cabernet Franc Gran Reserva
The vintage
The season started with an unusually warm and dry winter, with few days with temperatures below freezing. There were two frost episodes over the winter that damaged and knocked down some buds and shoots, resulting in natural thinning and therefore lower yields, with better quality, and concentration of the grapes. Well into the season, the temperature continued to rise, with highs of up to 37° C in the shade in the summer. As a result, the harvest began 20 days earlier than usual. Despite the differences in the vineyard (exposures, soil, clones), the high temperatures evened out ripening during this season. The harvest of all the Cabernet Franc lots was carried out in 3 days, beginning on March 18.
Location
Stretching from the Coastal range to the foothills of the Andes mountains, Colchagua’s Mediterranean climate and privileged terroirs have made it a place of choice to produce quality wines in Chile. Los Vascos estate lies at the foothills of the coastal range, 200km South West of Santiago, in the cooler part of Colchagua where the vines benefit from the natural cooling influence of the Pacific Ocean.
Terroir
With its strong personality, elegant structure and ageing potential, Cabernet Franc has always been one of our favourite varietals.
The idea to made a super premium Cabernet Franc came up after the terroir studies that were conducted at Los Vascos between 2009 and 2012. The first 2 ha were planted from 2013, reaching 18 ha today.
For this demanding grape variety we chose the hillsides of Santa Lucia where the soils made of altered granite with low argile content, and the south eastern exposition offers the optimal ripening conditions, whilst the gentle ocean breeze helps cooling the grapes at night.
The results didn’t disappoint us and as 2019 vintage we saw we had the grapes with the potential to make a great single varietal wine to join the Cromas range.
Winemaking
This grape variety calls for a very soft handling in the winery, with extreme caution and patience required during the extraction and maceration phases. Therefor the grapes are fermented in small stainless steel tanks, allowing to vinify the various plots separately. The wines are then aged in oak barrels for 80% and the remaining 20% in concrete tanks.
Grapes
Tasting
Beautiful, elegant, and crystalline ruby red color.
Red fruit-scented nose of ripe raspberries and fresh strawberries with the signature herbal and floral aromas of this variety. Rounding up this complexity are notes of orange peel and graphite, both of them, elegant and subtle contributions from the barrel. On the palate, this interesting medium-bodied wine offers a smooth attack, marked by an intense and refreshing acidity. Its firm yet pleasant tannins open for a persistent finish.
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