Farmstrong Claret is a moderately extracted, claret-style wine that showcases fresh Bordeaux varietal notes of fresh cherries, red currant and berries, oil-cured black olives with fresh herbs, and some dusty cocoa. On the palate, natural acid frames the wine along with moderate tannins. Unfined.
Modeled after the classic “Clairet” of Bordeaux, which were Bordeaux red blends that were more moderate in tannin, often blended with Malbec to craft a softer wine, the Farmstrong Field Claret is a field blend of grapes picked on the same day, from the same family vineyard, and then co-fermented (all fermented in the same tank together). It’s a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec & Petit Verdot from the Johnson Family Home Ranch in Ukiah, CA
After harvest, the grapes were de-stemmed, and fermented together in an open-top fermenter. The extraction from the skins was a combination of pump overs and punch downs to moderately mange the extraction of tannins and keep them in balance with the acid and flavors. The wine was pressed off from the skins after 14 days and aged for 8 months in neutral French oak barrels. Unfined, and filtered prior to bottling
WINEMAKING NOTES
A field pick of Cabernet, Malbec, Merlot and Petit Verdot, picked and co-fermented in an open top fermenter. About 14 days on the skins, pressed, and barrel aged in neutral French Oak for 8 months.
Glass: Lighter weight stock claret bottles, reduce case weight and therefore transportation impacts
Cork: Taint free corks from Amorim, natural product that ensures the wine reaches the customer without the risk of cork taint
No Capsule: Intentionally packaged without a capsule made from tin or plastic, to reduce environmental impact
1% for the Planet: Farmstrong is a member of 1% for the Planet, pledging to give back to support efforts that make a positive impact on the environment.
Specs
Varietals: 46% Cabernet Sauvignon & 56% of Malbec, Merlot, & Petit Verdot
Winemaker Sean Foster has been crafting wines of exceptional quality for 25 years, wines which he is very proud of. Sean has grown extremely fond of the individuality of a vineyard site in each and every vintage. This has led to the development of his own personal winemaking style, where these qualities are the focus of his wines and shared as Vintone.
Two of the things Sean loves are wine and music and there is a crossover in what he loves about them. When it comes to music Sean is an analog man, he loves the purity of the sound that analog delivers, the unique tone in music expressed by a musician and their instrument. He finds these moments can be delivered in the glass as well, where the wine draws you in and shares its story with you.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IN, IA, LA, ME, MD, MA, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
NV Farmstrong Field Claret - $40 = 22.21%
I’m horrible at this game, clicked to buy a case without looking. Farmstrong has provided consistently good party wine for my group of friends. No need for the rat report for me at this price.
A quick explanation on this. If you watch the national news, then yesterday you saw reports of the absolute disaster of snow response in Virginia. Well, I live smack-dab in the middle of that mess. My power was out when I opened this bottle for rattage. It was dark and cold, and my notes were limited to a few scribblings in my phone.
My power came back late yesterday. Wish I would have kept just enough of this bottle to have a say in the color, but that would have meant wasting wine, and this is not a wine I would willingly waste.
So, here is my cold, dark rattage report:
I planned a dinner of stuffed peppers to rat with this. Mother Nature had other plans. So, we drank this with Velveeta Shells & Cheese from our emergency stash. Not ideal, but you work with what you have, right? As for the color, it was dark in here, so the best I can say about the coloring is “probably red”.
I got a cranberry on the initial nose, but I got lots of red current in the flavor. I really like this wine! It’s dry, but not too dry. Fruit-forward without being fruity. It’s not very “tannin-y”, even at first opening. Best part was, this was 100% drinkable from about 5 minutes after opening. I cannot recall a wine that was this balanced and drinkable from the get-go.
It was so good at the get-go that I worried that it would be bland by the 2nd glass, but it didn’t. I found a really, really nice sour cherry note that coerced me into talking Mr. Fait out of his 2nd glass. There was a richness in the background I can’t put my finger on - not bitter, but rich. I want to say that I sensed a tiny bit of spice in the 3rd glass. Not much - not like a zin - just maybe if the bottle had cozied up next to a pepper mill.
TL;DR - Very, very approachable! Drinkable right now. Even with boxed mac & cheese. Can highly recommend to drink in the cold and the dark during a candlelit game of Uno with the kids. Would also be GREAT for a get-together with friends.
@irenegade Good catch. I can think of two options: they pick the vineyard the same day each year and then do a multi-vintage blend, or they keep the label as NV to make it simple just in case they want to do a multi-vintage blend. Hope the winery stops by to clarify!
No Michigan - so I will have to pass. but, question for the 'mates. Would it be appropriate and/or accurate to call a Wellington Victory a ‘Claret’? Why, or why not?
@kawichris650@woopdedoo I think Claret is just the old British word for a Bordeaux wine and mostly just connotes the blend of the five common varieties. I don’t think it’s regulated term and there’s no dues-seeking group like the Meritage Society to “certify” anything about it.
In general I really like Mendocino and it’s wines, but one that gives 102% can’t be missed, folks! Perhaps there’s a percentage point or two in there from other Mendocino crops?
Varietals: 46% Cabernet Sauvignon & 56% of Malbec, Merlot, & Petit Verdot
@bfast It’s listed as non-vintage. Which strikes me as funny. If the grapes were all “picked on the same day”, why is it not considered to be a product of a particular harvest year?
On the other hand, maybe it’s picked on the same day, but not the same year? For example, I always celebrate my birthday on the same day! (OK, in case anyone’s wondering, I’m joking.)
@fait Do you by any chance still have the bottle? I see from pictures on Cellartracker that in prior years there was a vintage listed on the back label.
Farmstrong Field Claret, Mendocino
Tasting Notes
WINEMAKING NOTES
Specs
What’s Included
4-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
$336/Case at Vintone Wines & Farmstrong Wines for 12x Farmstrong Field Claret, Mendocino
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IN, IA, LA, ME, MD, MA, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Jan 31 - Thursday, Feb 3
NV Farmstrong Field Claret
4 bottles for $59.99 $15/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $139.99 $11.67/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
NV Farmstrong Field Claret - $40 = 22.21%
I’m horrible at this game, clicked to buy a case without looking. Farmstrong has provided consistently good party wine for my group of friends. No need for the rat report for me at this price.
Lab rat report - power outage edition!
A quick explanation on this. If you watch the national news, then yesterday you saw reports of the absolute disaster of snow response in Virginia. Well, I live smack-dab in the middle of that mess. My power was out when I opened this bottle for rattage. It was dark and cold, and my notes were limited to a few scribblings in my phone.
My power came back late yesterday. Wish I would have kept just enough of this bottle to have a say in the color, but that would have meant wasting wine, and this is not a wine I would willingly waste.
So, here is my cold, dark rattage report:
I planned a dinner of stuffed peppers to rat with this. Mother Nature had other plans. So, we drank this with Velveeta Shells & Cheese from our emergency stash. Not ideal, but you work with what you have, right? As for the color, it was dark in here, so the best I can say about the coloring is “probably red”.
I got a cranberry on the initial nose, but I got lots of red current in the flavor. I really like this wine! It’s dry, but not too dry. Fruit-forward without being fruity. It’s not very “tannin-y”, even at first opening. Best part was, this was 100% drinkable from about 5 minutes after opening. I cannot recall a wine that was this balanced and drinkable from the get-go.
It was so good at the get-go that I worried that it would be bland by the 2nd glass, but it didn’t. I found a really, really nice sour cherry note that coerced me into talking Mr. Fait out of his 2nd glass. There was a richness in the background I can’t put my finger on - not bitter, but rich. I want to say that I sensed a tiny bit of spice in the 3rd glass. Not much - not like a zin - just maybe if the bottle had cozied up next to a pepper mill.
TL;DR - Very, very approachable! Drinkable right now. Even with boxed mac & cheese. Can highly recommend to drink in the cold and the dark during a candlelit game of Uno with the kids. Would also be GREAT for a get-together with friends.
@fait “probably red”
Thanks for the rat report! Sounds interesting, especially to open for a gathering. Wish I had room to grab a case!
@fait @knlprez I giggled at that one too…
@fait That sounds like a blind tasting. Thanks for the report. Hope y’all are warming up a bit now.
NV yet “the Farmstrong Field Claret is a field blend of grapes picked on the same day…” ??? I’m interested to know how this can be.
@irenegade Good catch. I can think of two options: they pick the vineyard the same day each year and then do a multi-vintage blend, or they keep the label as NV to make it simple just in case they want to do a multi-vintage blend. Hope the winery stops by to clarify!
No Michigan - so I will have to pass. but, question for the 'mates. Would it be appropriate and/or accurate to call a Wellington Victory a ‘Claret’? Why, or why not?
@woopdedoo
No, because the blend is too victorious.
Honestly though, I think that’s a good question and I’m curious what others say.
@kawichris650 @woopdedoo I think Claret is just the old British word for a Bordeaux wine and mostly just connotes the blend of the five common varieties. I don’t think it’s regulated term and there’s no dues-seeking group like the Meritage Society to “certify” anything about it.
In general I really like Mendocino and it’s wines, but one that gives 102% can’t be missed, folks! Perhaps there’s a percentage point or two in there from other Mendocino crops?
Varietals: 46% Cabernet Sauvignon & 56% of Malbec, Merlot, & Petit Verdot
@SmilingBoognish Oops, that’s my typo or perhaps my math skills shining through.
What vintage is this?
@bfast It’s listed as non-vintage. Which strikes me as funny. If the grapes were all “picked on the same day”, why is it not considered to be a product of a particular harvest year?
On the other hand, maybe it’s picked on the same day, but not the same year? For example, I always celebrate my birthday on the same day! (OK, in case anyone’s wondering, I’m joking.)
@bfast Now that I’m reading more carefully, I see that this was already asked and answered.
@fait Do you by any chance still have the bottle? I see from pictures on Cellartracker that in prior years there was a vintage listed on the back label.
@InFrom @InFrom There is no vintage listed anywhere on the bottle. It does say that only 15 barrels were produced.
Also had a “1% For the Planet” icon on the back. I had to look that one up. It’s pretty danged cool.
@fait Thanks for checking.
@InFrom I have a couple of bottles of Farmstrong left from a previous sale that are labeled:
Just what I need, more wine! I liked the white I picked up previously, so why not!?
/giphy broken-earnest-back
I’m always a fan of Farmstrong – anyone in PDX up for a split?
/giphy turbulent-delightful-fang
/giphy bright-barred-scallop
Different strokes, yes, but we really enjoyed their Field White.
/giphy exceptional-near-cushion
Any CLT winos, ahem, enologists interested in a split? The field white was definitely a great value.