2016 L'Ecole No. 41 Walla Walla Cabernet Franc

Happy Sunday!  Yesterday was a day full of errands and yard work, and today I got to relax a bit and do some work inside the house (though I set a live trap for a groundhog and managed to catch a raccoon, so I had to take that critter for a drive this afternoon).  Tonight it's time for a nice glass of wine and a good Sunday dinner, so I've decided to open up a bottle of 2016 L'Ecole No. 41 Walla Walla Cabernet Franc.  This is a limited production wine (just 250 cases) of 100% Cabernet Franc from the Seven Hills Vineyard in the Walla Walla Valley, so let's see how it tastes!

The wine is a lovely garnet color in the glass with great clarity.  The nose exhibits light aromas of leather, violets and a bit of pepper with some undertones of cocoa powder.  The taste is wonderfully characteristic of the varietal, with a rush of ripe black fruit, blackberry, currant and plum that transitions easily to some notes of dark chocolate and peppery spice midpalate.  The tannins are youthful, but well structured, providing a great base for the long, smooth and very dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's just a pleasant drinking wine and great example of a varietal that is often overlooked as a blending grape.  This wine has a certain Mediterranean flair to it, so it would pair nicely with a broad range of cuisine, from the bouillabaisse of the French coast, to Sicilian pasta dishes to Greek moussaka. Tonight I am enjoying this with a bit of French or Belgian bistro cuisine, some moules-frites, since I went to Costco yesterday and am trying to use up the 5 pounds of mussels I bought!  Cheers!