Valley Road Vineyards
Cabernet Franc
2022
Virginia, USA
Monticello AVA
Cabernet Franc 90%
Petit Verdot 10%
9 Months
New French oak 30%
Neutral French oak 70%
Oak influence on flavor
Red cherry, Raspberry, Peppercorns, Dried herbs.
About
Valley Road 2022 Cabernet Franc
The 2022 Cabernet Franc highlights one of Virginia’s most popular varieties while adding a bit of Petit Verdot to create a perfectly balanced, lightweight, yet complex wine.
Classic flavors of ripe red cherry, black pepper, and dried herbs are preset on the nose and mid palate, while elevated acidity helps keep this wine bright and refreshing.
Maturation was 9 months in a combination of New and neutral French oak barrels to give it a rounder mouthfeel without adding too much oak influence.
Approachable yet complex, this is a great example of a classic Virginia Cabernet Franc. Tons of ripe red fruit on the palate, very soft tannins and perfect acidity to tie everything together.
Pairings
In a Pinch
Lean cuts of lamb or pork. Hard, salty cheeses.
Deeper Dive
Virginia Cabernet Franc is one of those wines that is great on its own, but it also has the ability to pair nicely with the right dishes.
Herbs and spices (not heat) on lean cuts of meat are great here to bring out the natural pepper qualities in Cabernet Franc.
It’s designed to be a medium bodied wine with very soft tannins, so be careful not to overpower it with anything too rich.
Stand out features: Bright acidity, soft tannins, red fruit.
Pairing Scale
This is a general guide to give you an idea where this wine falls in a spectrum of dish complexities.
Steer Clear
Anything too rich or fatty or too light and delicate. Also, leave the chocolate for the dessert wines since a dry wine like this will make the chocolate taste bitter.
Cheeses
Recipe Ideas
Service
Which glasses?
All-purpose glasses are going to be perfect here.
Should I decant this?
Why "Doesn't need it"?
There’s a lot of complexity in this wine, but most of it comes out quickly in the glass. You could decant this wine with no problem, but you might miss the evolution in your glass.
Serving Temp
The correct serving temperature is important to show a wine’s true potential, but don’t stress over getting the temp exactly right. Use the chart below to try to get in the right ballpark.
Aging
When should I open this?
If a wine has been released by the producer and is available for sale, it means it is ready to drink. Wines don’t necessarily get “better” with age, they just change. Typically, this change involves things like losing fresh fruit flavors in exchange for more savory notes.
The moment you should open the bottle depends on your preference, so it’s more important to understand the evolution and the life span of the bottle than it is to try to time its opening perfectly. (It’s far better to open a bottle too early than too late.)
This bottle should probably be opened between:
2025 – 2030
Producer
ABOUT US
Organized in 2015, Valley Road Vineyards was conceived by a group of friends who brought talents from successful careers in law, advertising, insurance, real estate development, and writing, among others. With our mutual love of Virginia and a shared desire to support the emerging Virginia wine industry, we thought a vineyard and tasting room operation in the heart of the Monticello American Viticulture Area (AVA) would be a good choice for our next chapter together.
We found the ideal site for both a new vineyard and a tasting room, with stunning views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Located just 20 minutes west of Charlottesville, we had the added bonus of being at the head of the Rockfish Valley in Afton on Virginia’s famed craft beverage route Nelson 151.
We planted our first vines in the spring of 2016, bottled our first wines that same year, and opened SIP Tasting Room that summer. Since that time, we have added a number of outdoor seating areas, converted our Barn to a magnificent event space, created two outdoor wedding venues, and we have added two additional vineyards for a total of 17 acres under vine.
OUR VINEYARDS
AFTON SOUTH
Monticello AVA
Planted Spring 2016
The vineyard directly above the Valley Road campus is what attracted us to this property and is now recognized as the “gateway to Nelson 151.” At just under 1000’ elevation, southeast-facing, and with great air drainage, it offers optimal growing conditions for the four one-acre blocks of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot vines.
MOUNTAIN GLEN
Monticello AVA
Leased Winter 2017
Located 20 miles south of Valley Road near Lovingston. Senior Vineyard Consultant Grayson Poats and Vineyard Manager Walter Pugh have tended these seven acres of vines with care to yield fruit worthy of inclusion in Valley Road estate wines. Chardonnay, Chambourcin, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Petit Manseng, and Viognier.
GRAYSON VINEYARD
Monticello AVA
Planted Spring 2021
Our latest project is an additional six-acre vineyard at our Afton property along Nelson 151. In addition to two clones of Cabernet Franc and Merlot, we planted our first block of Albariño. The Valley Road Founders dedicated the vineyard as the Grayson Vineyard on August 21, 2021 to honor our first General Manager, Grayson Poats, one of Virginia’s preeminent vineyard specialists.
Interested in joining our wine club?
The Valley Road Vineyards Wine Club is FREE to join.
Wine Club members receive four bottles, three times a year.
Select your Wine Preference:
All Red Wines
All White Wines
Mostly Red (3 bottles of Red/Rosé and 1 of White)
Mostly White (3 bottles of White and 1 of Red/Rosé)
50/50 (2 bottles of Red/Rosé and 2 bottles of White)
All Wine Boxes can be customized to include your favorite wines.
20% discount on all wine purchases.
10% discount on all merchandise and food purchases.
Complimentary tastings or glasses of wine for Wine Club members. (Members only; limit two complimentary servings between Wine Club months).
Invitations to exclusive members-only events.
Early access to newly-released wines and notice of wines approaching sold-out status.
Convenience of pick-up at winery or shipment* directly to you.
Contact
