Hermann J. Wiemer, 2014 Magdalena Vineyard Cabernet Franc

No.16 | What's In My Glass

Lately I’ve been revisiting my notes on Hermann J. Wiemer’s Magdalena Vineyard Cabernet Franc in preparation for a presentation I’ll be giving in Chinon later this month, and remembering that I had a bottle of the 2014 in my cellar, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to check in on this nearly 10-year-old Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc.

The Magdalena Vineyard is emerging as a leading single-vineyard site for Cabernet Franc in the Finger Lakes. Purchased by Hermann in 1999, the vineyard is located on the west side of Seneca Lake, about 16km (10 mi) north of the winery. The block of Cabernet Franc that goes into their single-vineyard bottling was planted in 2004 by massale selection from clone 327 vine material from the original block that was planted in 1999.

L: The underlying geology around Seneca and Cayuga Lakes, R: Magdalena Vineyard location (arrow), winery location (star)

I had a chance to visit this site with Head Winemaker and Co-Owner Fred Merwarth back in July 2021, which allowed me to get a sense of some of the nuances that makes this vineyard and block so special for Cabernet Franc.

While the “banana belt” area on the southeast side of Seneca Lake is often praised for being one of the region’s top spots for red varieties, the Magdalena vineyard’s proximity to Seneca Lake (about 800m west) and position up the west side, actually makes it a warm site for the west side of Seneca Lake with less of a cooling influence from the lake in summer. It also receives less rainfall, and it benefits from warm air that comes into the vineyard from the west. This block of Cabernet Franc is also on an east-facing slope, which is particularly helpful for reducing botrytis pressure later in the season. Finally, the vineyard sits atop a limestone bedrock that extends down from Lake Ontario, which is to the north. The topsoil depth ranges from 2-2.5m (6-8 feet), and is classified as Honeoye silt-loam, which is a well-draining, glacially-derived till.

Fred and the GRAND Hermann J Wiemer map. This map is a wine nerd’s dream, so much detail! Varieties, clones, soils, planting dates, and more!

Another interesting thing to note about the fruit from this block is that even though it was planted from clone 327 material from the original block, the clusters look quite different. Regardless of the vintage, Fred noted that the clusters are long and more loose, with smaller berries with a higher skin to pulp ratio. This, coupled with the higher vine density (about 5500/ha), makes this block naturally low yielding, and the resulting wine always has good concentration and a bit more pronounced tannic structure. In the cellar, the wine is generally made with a small percentage of whole cluster, longer maceration, and aging in a combination of mostly older Hungarian and French oak.

Now, I know what you’re thinking - “Allison! The Finger Lakes experiences A LOT of vintage variation. What was the 2014 vintage like?” The vintage was, for the most part, a moderate, “normal,” long vintage. Rainfall in the summer was higher than normal, but the fall was sunnier and drier than normal. The temperatures weren’t too warm or too cool, but cooler than what many would consider to be some of the region’s “top” red vintages, like 2012, 2016 or 2020. The drier conditions in the fall allowed for longer hang-time, and winemaker Dillon Buckley shared with me that this was actually one of the latest harvests of Cabernet Franc from this site, picked on November 5th and 6th. In general, 2014 whites and reds are fresh with balanced alcohols and good aging potential.

In the glass, I was immediately impressed by how youthful the wine was presenting. It definitely had some tertiary elements on the nose, but it still had plenty of freshness as well. The nose opened with a nice mix of slightly dried, sweet-savoury red fruit notes like cherry, cranberry and raspberry, reminiscent of cran-raspberry fruit leather. The fruit notes were complemented by a myriad of herbal and earthy undertones like forest floor, late autumn cedar wood, and dried jasmine.

On the palate, the acidity was elevated, snappy and quite persistent, and the fruits a bit more fresh. There was also lots of exotic, spicy undertones on the palate, like cardamom, star anise and green coffee bean. The fruit and acidity were nicely in balance with silky, resolved tannins that had just a touch of grip on the finish.

What I was particularly impressed with was how the palate experience was like a crescendo from start to finish. Initially presenting lean and taut, and then slowly growing and gaining weight and texture through the middle palate and to the finish. I think this 2014 is in a great place in its life and is drinking superbly at the moment. If I had another bottle, I would hold onto it and open it again in 3-5 years, just to see how it was holding up. But if you have this in your cellar, feel free to pop the cork and enjoy this fine example of mature Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc.