Gen5 Cabernet 2021

Finding a fifth-generation-run California winery is an extreme rarity. And discovering such a wine that slides so smoothly into place with the Tuesday night meal, as well as with any cocktail party—from a winery that cares about delivering significant quality at a great price– that is simply a vanishing breed in California.

I’m exceptionally happy to introduce the Lange Twins Winery and their family-farmed Gen5 (generation five) Cabernet. Here’s why I love it:

Small farmers living on the land tend to really, REALLY care what is happening to the land. Spraying a whole bunch of chemicals that your grandchildren are going to inhale just isn’t what they do. To that end, here is an incredible list of certifications the Lange family’s farm has obtained: Certified Green, Renewable Energy, water reclamation and management, wildlife habitat conservation, riparian vegetation and soil balance management, and crop and vineyard protect establishment. I know many people don’t give a hoot about government certifications, but hey—at the very least, this list says the Langes are thinking hard about what does and does not go into their wine.

I also believe small farmers make better wine – their name is on the label, not some marketing brand, and when they pour it, everyone is going to know who made it. I can’t think of a family whose name is on a wine label that doesn’t care deeply about what is inside the bottle and how it was made than this one. And in this glass of Cabernet, it shows:

This Cabernet offers up oodles of blackberry, black currant and dark cherry aromas on the nose and palate. It’s from Lodi, right at the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, which gives the wine its gutsy, muscular structure as well as its high aromatic lift. Coming in at nearly 14% alcohol, it’s got enough fruit to deliver as a cocktail but certainly won’t overpower the family meal of steak au poivre in a cognac sauce or a simple braised BBQ pork with cumin, nestled in caramelized onions.

The Lange family has done something truly remarkable – they made a Cabernet that shows well against massive corporate-made wines, that is hand-crafted, sustainable, thoughtful and above all, majorly delicious. There is simply no reason not to enjoy! Cheers.

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