In Wine on 04 Feb 2025
I walked into the Cab Franc Forward event unsure how I felt about the idea of claiming Cabernet Franc as not just a great grape of New York State, but as “the” official red grape of our industry.
Obviously I love Cab Franc, and I love it all over the state, and I have for 17 years, so in many ways I’m the choir to which everyone in that room was preaching today.
But is it always necessary to pick a single red grape to elevate above others? Does this mission do justice to the wonderful diversity of New York State? We speak of Cab Franc’s sensitivity to microclimate, to soil and aspect differences—so with this declaration, are we saying all of New York has the same terroir? Napa has Cabernet, sure, but “California” doesn’t claim it. Same with Oregon: despite the success of Oregon Pinot Camp, it’s the Willamette Valley, not the entire state, that stakes its reputation on great Pinot Noir.
I asked every single winery representative, from owner to owner’s kid to winemaker, for their take. Everyone had different reasons for being at this event today, but ultimately, one Macari representative said it best: “You know what? We’re all here, we’re all pouring wines we’re proud of, and we all make great Cab Franc.”
He’s right. Everyone’s Cab Franc is one of their best red wines, if not their best wine period, so why shouldn’t it be New York’s red grape? As another winemaker joked, “If we don’t take it, Virginia will.”
(That’s perhaps a subject for another post. Virginia has a serious claim on the grape and I’ll be the first to admit that.)
Regional competition aside, Cab Franc truly does unite the state and Cab Franc Forward appears to be an organic movement that has the support of top producers. That’s enough for me.
Though I saw old friends, tasted great wine from my favorite grape, and met some very talented people, I left the event a little sad. Niagara Escarpment wineries apparently didn’t care enough to make the trip. Who would have cared enough to come and represent Niagara? No one, I guess. It’s a region without leadership. For now.
A wise friend reminded me that regional character changes by generation, everything is cyclical, and in 20 years the regional politics of New York wine could be unrecognizable. I just hope someday my home region’s wineries take enough pride in each other to make the same drive I made many times as a broke winery employee and blogger, so they can have a voice in the room when the New York wine industry gets together to make something special and new. It would have been worth it to me back then just to bring my own crappy wine or pour someone else’s much better wine in exchange for a couch to crash on and a leftover half-empty bottle. Always forward, forward always.