Michael Schnelle and Nancy Irelan, owners of Red Tail Ridge Winery, make some of my favorite wines on the east coast. I have been to their tasting room at least half a dozen times, if not more, and I always walk away impressed. This April I did a tasting up there, and this wine absolutely blew me away - the Red Tail Ridge Blaufranisch 2023.
Blaufrankisch is finally starting to come into it's own on the East Coast. The age of the vines, the education in the field by vineyard managers, the understanding of the fruit as it has grown and matured by the winemakers, have all taken time. Not that there haven't been good Blaufrankisch before. Indeed, while the overall industry has seemingly made great strides, Red Tail Ridge has been and remains, one of the best producers of this varietal wine in the country - and one of my personal favorites.
One of the things I have to make note of is the addition of Meagz Goodwin to the winemaking team. She has evolved into one of the prominent winemakers in the Finger Lakes region. Godwin spent almost a decade at Red Newt Cellars before joining the Red Tail Ridge as Associate Winemaker, Meagz works closely with co-owner and founding winemaker Nancy Irelan. As Red Tail Ridge continues to grow and evolve, Meagz is a notable addition.
According to the winemaker's notes, the grapes were harvested by hand on October 10th & 13th in 2023. They were destemmed and placed in open air vessels and Schneckenleitner for fermentation. Full malolactic fermentation occurred. Then the wine was aged for 18 months in neutral Schneckenleitner, neutral Puncheons and neutral French Barriques.
The resulting wine is an absolutely joy, The Red Tail Ridge Blaufrankisch 2023. Floral notes of violets and lavender burst forth from the glass, to lead off the aroma of this medium bodied red. Notes of cherry lollipop, fresh cherries, and spices all also come forth. The cherry comes through on the palate along with dark plum and cassis, black cherry and cranberry. That cranberry captures the acidity and combines with a does of black tea and black pepper, to give firmness to the finish of the wine. This was a spectacular wine, and easily remains, in my mind, one of the best Blaufrankisch in North America.
Congrats to Nancy, Mike, and Meagz!