Wine of the week 7/28/20

Laurent Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva 2019
Regularly $13.99/On Sale for $11.96

Gerard Laurent made his name by converting the 18th century Bordelais winery, Château L’Escart, to organic, then fully Biodynamic farming, while increasing the quality of the wine. His son Damien assisted him for 12 years before setting off on his own to start a similar project in the Maipo Valley of Chile. This Cabernet Sauvignon (with a splash of Carmenere to give it some particularly Chilean personality) was grown organically on riverbed soils of alluvial clay loam and fermented in steel with about 3 months barrel aging, including a very judiciously brief stint in new oak.

This wine (in a previous vintage) was the first red wine we featured when we re-opened Market Street Wine. We felt the wine (and the producer) was a good indicator of our priorities and tastes: delicious, affordable, and distinctive wines, grown as ethically as possible. (We also carry the “Polemico” from Laurent, a lovely wine made from the classic Chilean Pais grape; and Laurent’s Bordeaux, Château L’Escart, is by far our best-selling Bordeaux.) We’re very happy that we and the Laurent Family are still in sync.

Last year’s vintage was notable for its structure at such a low price. This vintage is all silky, lush juice, but with just enough tannin to hold up to your burgers and grilled onions. An amazing deal on organic cab that you should not miss.