Mae’s Vineyard is owned and managed by Herb Quady of Quady North (see my review of the Quady Cab Franc).
The plot is organically farmed, and its loamy clay and marine sediment sit atop a substrate of granite (hence Division’s name for this bottling). Division uses a pied de cuve technique for the primary fermentation, harvesting and culturing native yeasts from the site. Picking was done in two stages and vinified separately, with a small portion of whole cluster. The later pick reposed on skins in concrete fermenters for a month before pressing. The wine was then aged in French oak.
Youthful and taut, it has a nimble trace of winter berries, winter mint, cracked pepper, and cranberries steeped in mountain air. The body is lean and sinewy but not too skinny, with chewy coffee tannins and a finish that feels cooling and serene: juniper, juniper berry, strong black tea. Very primary, and maybe not made to age, but a couple of years in bottle will add filigree. Serve it now with peppery charcuterie, roasted or slow-smoked pork, pepper-rubbed steak, aged cheeses.
12.3% abv | $30 (sample) | 100 cases made
