I recently participated in a tasting offered by the Garden State Winegrower's Association about New Jersey Blaufrankisch. The program was over overseen by Tom Cosentino and David Furer. Noted wine grape geneticist Dr. José Vouillamoz, best known for his foundational contribution to Wine Grapes, led a Zoom presentation for a limited number of US wine media about the grape Blaufränkisch/Lemberger on Friday, April 30, 2021 on behalf of Garden State Wine Growers Association. In addition to his talk about the history of the grape, Dr. Vouillamoz also conducted a tasting of five New Jersey Blaufränkisch wines with the assembled media. Just thrilled they called me media, because I have been called much worse.
Blaufränkisch (German for blue Frankish) is a dark-skinned variety of grape used for red wine. Blaufränkisch, which is a late-ripening variety, produces red wines which are typically rich in tannin and may exhibit a pronounced spicy character. DNA profiling has shown that Blaufränkisch is a cross between Gouais blanc (Weißer Heunisch; male parent) and Blaue Zimmettraube (female parent; the offspring of Blauer Gänsfüsser). Historical sources of grapevine classification have provided very solid evidence that the geographic area of origin of the variety is Lower Styria (today Slovenian Styria). In America the grape is also known as Lemberger, Blauer Limberger or Blue Limberger and is grown in Pennsylvania, Washington state, Michigan, New Jersey, Idaho, New York, Colorado, Ohio, Virginia, and California.
Beneduce Vineyards is a winery in the Pittstown section of Alexandria Township in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. A family farm since 2000, the vineyard was first planted in 2009, and opened to the public in 2012. Beneduce has 10 acres of grapes under cultivation, and produces 4,000 cases of wine per year. The winery is named after the family that owns it. Beneduce Vineyards primarily grows and produces wine from aromatic varietals, including Blaufränkisch (Lemberger), Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chambourcin, Chardonnay, Corot noir, Gewürztraminer, Malbec, Noiret, Pinot noir, Riesling, and Syrah. It is the only winery in New Jersey that produces wine from Noiret, which is a red hybrid grape developed in New York in 1973.Beneduce is not located in one of New Jersey's three viticultural areas. However, applications have been made to establish a new Hunterdon County AVA.
Mike Beneduce Jr. is the Vineyard Manager & Winemaker at the winery. In 2010, Mike graduated Magna Cum Laude from Cornell University with a double major in Plant Sciences and Viticulture/Enology. The recently introduced major focused on techniques specific to cool climate grape growing and winemaking, and most classes were taught in one of the local vineyards or Cornell’s new student winery.
Mike also gained experience working at Sawmill Creek Vineyards in the Finger Lakes region of NY, where he was trained in the arts of pruning and canopy management by a 4th generation grape grower. He is a Certified Sommelier under the Court of Master Sommeliers, and remains an active professional member of the international gastronomic society the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs.
Mike volunteers on the Board of Trustees for America’s Grow-A-Row, a nonprofit farm dedicated to sustainably growing and donating fresh produce to people in need. He has served as Chairman of the Garden State Winegrowers Association and continues to push for an increase in the quality of wine made in New Jersey. In 2017, Mike was named Edible Jersey’s Beverage Artisan of the Year.
One of the other important things to know is that Mike spent time in Austria apprenticing, and saw them making Blaufrankisch there. "I found that they sorta fell into two different camps. One of them was treating the grape very much like they were in Burgundy, where they were treating it like a delicate grape, shorter maceration times, less new oak, much more focused on elegance and aromatics," said Mike. Mike felt that their terroir fell much more into this category of wine. "The other side, they were treating it much more like a Bordeaux grape. Heavier extraction times, longer maceration, much more new oak, darker, riper fruit."
Beneduce sees a lot of potential for Blaufrankisch. It can be made in a lighter Burgundy or Rhone-ish style, which suits the northern wineries of the state. The bigger, Bordeaux style, would be much better suited to the southern part of the state. They would all be different, but they would all be Blaufrankisch. I think he's absolutely right.
Blue 2 remains in oak generally speaking for 18 months at this point. 30% of that is new. The second portion of the aging is now taking place in a big cask. And then two years in the bottle before release.
I have been a big fan of this wine since Beneduce Vineyards introduced it. I wrote in 2014, "There is no question that it is a very good wine and it shows tremendous promise. The Blueprint Blaufrankish 2012. Now, I have not been a fan of Blaufrankish. My favorite of the specimen is Red Tail Ridge's version of this varietal wine. But I have to say Mike Beneduce Jr. is keeping pace with the trendsetter here. I liked this wine.
"Beneduce's notes read: "Every ambitious endeavor begins with a detailed plan – a blueprint – in our case. Seeking to create a wine definitive of our Estate vineyard, our answer was unveiled in the form of a unique varietal, Blaufränkisch. The vines have anchored themselves deeply into our mineral-rich hillside...."
"The wine was a medium bodied dry red, with lovely, bright fruit up front. Plum and raspberry come across, blueberries and cracked pepper too, as promised. A lovely drinking wine with nice acidity and low tannins. A lovely, Rhone-ish styled red with plenty of flavor. A lovely lunch or dinner wine!"
I wrote in 2017, "This is as big and deep a Beneduce Vineyards Blue 2 Blaufrankisch 2014 is a gorgeous fruit bomb of a wine, with deep plum and strawberry, and hints of cassis, but aged in French oak for a big tannin to match the big acidity. Almost like a Tempranillo! A delicious wine! One of the best Blaufrankisch wines on the east coast!"
Upon this second tasting of the 2017, I was once again impressed. Lots of plum and dark cherry. The wine impresses as very fresh, juicy, fruit forward, but with some oak. It's elegant. Smooth. Layered. Not only is this among the best Bluafrankisch on the east coast, but I think nationally as well. And I think this is a terrific red wine in general.