Very different interpretation of Cab Franc-
Hobo generally has a few wines below 12% each year and many in the low 12%.
There is “pursuit of balance” and then their is “too lean.” I’d be curious where this fell, but admit I’d have a hard time believing it wasn’t the latter without actually trying the wine.
This was Broc Cellars, I’m very curious if anyone has tried this.
I’m not great at notes, but this was really plummy, nice acid, but there was something there I simply could not put my finger on. No hint of green or really any Loire character, but it had a quality.
I’ve tried a number of Broc wines but all were 2011s so not sure if they are representative of other vintages. I loved the whites but given my preference for acid driven whites that wasn’t surprising. I didn’t enjoy the reds. I found them all to have a sameness to them. I am sensitive to what I call a cranberry flavor that I find in wines that seem to be picked under ripe. This flavor was too prominent for me and overwhelmeed any other sense of variety that may have existed.
The Hobo wines haven’t showed the same cranberry and never seem lean even when they come in at low alcohol levels.
It truly is becoming more common to see lighter style red wines under 12% and I have enjoyed quite a few of them. At the Rhone Rangers trade seminar last week in DC, Two Shepherds poured a Cinsault from Bechtold Vineyard that came in at about 11.5%
And I currently make a handful of reds that come in around there - to complement the other wines that I make. My 2016 Cinsaut is listed at 11.5% but is only 10.8%; my Carignane is listed at 12.1 or so but is about 11.7; and my aberration, a stainless aged red that I serve slightly chilled, usually comes in around 12%.
These wines are just as ‘serious’ as ‘bigger’ ones, but definitely on the lighter scale.
Broc makes some really interesting wines, and I’m gonna have to search out that Cab Franc for sure.
Cheers!
According to my notes, I had a 2012 Broc Cellars Cab Franc that was 12% on the button, and other wines of theirs that I tried were not much higher. I’ve only had the 12 rendition and I agree that it’s quite atypical for Cab Franc. It drank more like a Pinot – lighter bodied and redder fruited than what I am used to.
Generally speaking, I like what Chris is doing with his wines and I appreciate the lower ABV. The wines I’ve tried are certainly lead, but not lacking in flavor. And I absolutely loved Vine Starr red, despite not being a Zin lover.
I’ve had Larry’s wines and those he mentions are quite good. Also if I remember correctly, Wind Gap had a Trousseau Gris and a Pinot Noir that claimed to be 11 and change and 12 and change, and a couple of Bryan Harrington’s wines were in the 11-12 range as well. There are more but off the top I can’t remember specifically who, although it’s something I’ve increasingly noticed. And the wines don’t suffer as a result either - as long as the wine making is solid, you end up with very good stuff, same as you do when the ABV is higher - the number itself doesn’t tell you much; the wine does. I often check after tasting just to see what i just had, and often as not I’m way off.
I will say that I have found some ways below this ABV level to be a bit more ‘challenging’ to drink. For instance, some Syrahs that I’ve had have had beautiful aromatics were as hard as nails (and that’s an understatement). And to me, varieties like Grenache NEED more ripeness to show off what the variety brings to the table, and it’s really really tough to have that happen at such low ABVs. I’ve also found many Roses that come in under this level to simply be missing the body that alcohol natural adds to a wine.
As usual, YMMV . . .
Cheers.
A recent 2013 Arnot-Roberts Clary Ranch Syrah had 11.8% and was super delicious 
I drink enough Dirty & Rowdy, Arnot-Roberts and Wind Gap that ABV below 12% is a regular sight at my house.
Enjoyed a Broc Happy Canyon last year.
That wine is joy in a bottle.
Best, Jim
12% and below is very much a common occurrence these days but even more important is that the wines are almost always delicious. Off the top of my head producers that have wine (wines) at 12% or below, Dirty & Rowdy, Ryme, Jolie-Laide, Idlewild, Martha Stouman, Broc, Harrington, Leo Steen and many more. Not every wine in their line up but at least one or more.
Then you also have producers like Sandlands that make multiple wines in the 12% to 12.5%. There are also a ton of these producers.
This doesn’t mean that these producers or this style of wine is the “best” in California. There are many more traditional wineries also making excellent wine. It is just very refreshing (literally) to have a range of wines to suit all tastes.
Tom
2014 Wind Gap Nellesen Vineyard Syrah 11.7%. I like it but is a little on the lean side.
only have to be within 1.5% of reality, I believe, so 11% could be as much as 12.5%, or even 9.5%.
Indeed - or you could just call it a ‘table wine’ and not have to put any alcohol level on it 
My guess is that most wines that are under 13% are closer to the actual alcohol number than wines over 14%. I think that there is more fudging at higher levels - but I’d love to be proven wrong.
Cheers!
Just drank a 2016 Matthiasson Cabernet franc that clocked in at 11.5% over the weekend and loved it. Well balanced all around.
NyQuil at 10% ABV is the closest I’ve had since 2003.
I thought the 17 Vine Starr was decent and interesting, but not something worth revisiting at the price. The Valdiguie I thought was seriously flawed though. Not a trace of fruit anywhere to be found. I adore Texier, but these make his wines seem like Parker bombs in comparison, so it’s an interesting take on winemaking for sure.