Hermann J. Wiemer, Finger Lakes (New York) Cabernet Franc 2014

If you go nuts for big, rich, “gobs of fruit” wines, this is not your thing.  However, if you like lighter reds with lots of complexity and broad versatility with food, this is a wine to relish for its stylishness and restraint.  To be clear, it is not an “austere” wine, just one that is very delicate and fine.  The fruit recalls fresh red cherries both aromatically and in terms of flavor, with very fresh acidity and extremely fine-grained tannins that are precisely measured in relation to the fruit’s light weight.  That’s an accomplishment of real importance, as a more extended maceration or a hotter fermentation would have produced a bottom-heavy wine without the grace or nimbleness of this lithe little beauty.