2004 Boisseau Red
Palate
Lush round and full with sweet easy tannins.
Aromas
Red raspberries, dried cherry, toast & dried Herbes de Provence.
Food Pairings
Grilled red meats always work well with Boisseau Red as do simple bistro dishes such as Cassoulet and duck confit.
Vineyard
The eponymous Boisseau Vineyard 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
2004 can best be categorized as a roller coaster vintage. The growing season was quite good, with a very early flowering due to a hot May, below normal summer temperatures, and a slightly higher than normal rainfall. Mid August through early September was a beautiful window of perfect ripening weather. Low crop levels combined with an early flowering resulted in a very early start of the harvest under ideal conditions. Mid-September was problematic with a series of rains from hurricanes that brought some dilution and berry splitting. Late September through mid October gave us beautiful sunny, dry weather. The reds were able to take advantage of this. There was much fruit desiccation because of splitting and botrytis from the hurricanes, but this seemed only to concentrate, in a good way, as there was no sour rot or off flavors. The vintage reminds us of 1999, which produced wines with silky tannins, generous fruit and medium body. Harvest for Boisseau red grapes was from September 27 to October 5, 2004.
Winemaking
This single vineyard “Bordeaux” blend is 77% Cabernet Franc, 20% Petit Verdot and 3% Merlot. It represents the best blend of the barrels produced of Boisseau Vineyard. This is the first single vineyard bottling of Richard Boisseau’s Vineyard. The more I work with Cabernet Franc I find that I am intrigued with its savory perfume and delicate, soft finish. My winemaking is more Burgundian than Bordelais with Franc. We hand sort before destemming and then again afterwards to remove pink berries and stem pieces. Fermentation begins naturally in small one ton fermenters. We punch down by hand once or twice per day. Pressing takes place after about 7 to 10 days, usually before fermentations are complete. The wine was aged in old (neutral) oak barrels for 17 months. 150 cases produced.
Linden Vineyards / Our Wines / 2004 Vintage | 2004 Boisseau Red