Cabernet Franc 2018

This deliciously crunchy red is going to be a big favourite throughout the summer months and beyond.

Although based in Marlborough, Kelly Washington’s Cabernet Franc comes from Hawke’s Bay, specifically the currently in high demand Howell Vineyard in the warm Bridge Pa Triangle. It’s matured in French oak for ten months, but very little of that is new oak, which prevents the fruit from being overpowered. The result is a vibrant Cabernet Franc with a big personality that’s screaming out for barbeque season and long, boozy lunches in the sunshine. Expect a perfumed, luscious and super-elegant red, displaying fresh blackcurrant, crisp strawberry, ripe plum, raspberries and silky rose petal notes. Often Cabernet Franc has a green and vegetal edge to it, but not here, this is pure fruity pleasure.

We knew we were going to love this new venture as soon as we found out that the winemaker, Tamra Kelly-Washington, had grown up in Marlborough (during the region’s explosion) and started her career at the incredible Seresin Estate. What a place to cut one’s teeth. Following that she headed to the USA, Australia and Italy to hone her skills, then back to New Zealand, spending ten years at Yealands Estate and eventually returning to Seresin. Now she and her husband, Simon, have launched a new enterprise called Kelly Washington. They work with trusted growers who have old vines and high-altitude vineyards, and, crucially, ones that farm sustainably, organically or biodynamically. Together they create wonderfully balanced wines with a real sense of provenance, sophisticatedly packaged in a way that makes you want to buy them all and line them up in a display.