Damiani Wine Cellars, located in Burdett, on Seneca Lake, is owned by founders Lou Damiani and Phil Davis, along with partner Glenn Allen. Founded in the mid-1990s, the winery focuses on producing high-quality vinifera red wines and sparkling wines, often collaborating with local vineyards. Lou Damiani is a former food scientist and engineer who leads winemaking, focusing on dry red wines. Phil Davis is an experienced local viticulturist and owner of Davis Vineyard, responsible for grape production. Glenn Allen joined as a partner in 2007 and acts as the general manager.
. Displaying unique soil types, aspects, vine age and proximities to the lake shore, each site was selected to formulate a blend of cabernet franc that represents the vintage as a whole – a season that brought us beautiful flavor and depth in the cabernet francs from the warm summer and abundant sunshine we received.
Katey Larwood is the new winemaker at Damiani. This is among her first wines there. Katey was born and raised in the East Bay Area of California and received her BS in viticulture and enology from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She has made wine in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Russian River Valley, Central Otago (New Zealand), Alsace, Hunter Valley (Australia), Mendocino, and the Finger Lakes.
In 2015 Katey came to the Finger Lakes to work at Keuka Lake Vineyards for two seasons and fell in love with the region. After her time here Katey returned to California and worked at Goldeneye Winery in Anderson Valley, Mendocino making Pinot Noir, Sparkling wines, and Gewürztraminer. She then returned to the Finger Lakes to work at Damiani.
Damiani Wine Cellars Cabernet Franc 2024 is 100% Cabernet Franc grown in the Finger Lakes
"The 2024 Cabernet Franc is a blend of 80% fruit from our grower partners and 20% from our Estate Davis Vineyard. The growers represent both sides of Seneca Lake, in the Dundee and Penn Yann areas as well as Hector and Lodi," read the winemaker's notes. It was grown on two different soils: Lansing gravelly silt loam and Aurora-Angola silt loam. It was harvested in mid-October of 2024. It went through a15 to 30-day indigenous yeast fermentations in 1-ton bin and 3-ton stainless steel tank .It was pressed to dryness, and racked to barrel for native malolactic fermentation. The wine was then aged 11 months on lees in neutral 228-liter French oak barrels with no bâtonnage. The wine in unfined and unfiltered.
The Damiani Wine Cellars Cabernet Franc 2024 is a wonderful medium-bodied red wine with a lovely color. The nose and palate both start off with sweet red fruit - fresh bright cherries, fresh strawberries, and red raspberries. It got a lovely soft middle, and a terrific ending with very firm tannins (not to big - think bright, fresh cranberry) and love soft white pepper tannins. The zippy acidity keeps the fruit linger in the mouth for almost 60 seconds. Just a stunning wine. Elegant, complex, well constructed, and beautifully balanced. An excellent wine.
Congrats to Katey Larwood and the team at Damiani!