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Foris Winery 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon
Leading a Legacy
Nestled in a pristine alpine valley in southwestern Oregon’s rugged Siskiyou Mountain range, Foris Vineyards has been a true viticultural pioneer for over thirty five years.
Prior to joining Foris Vineyards, Stephanie spent time at Double Canyon, a custom crush in Washington, and three years with Justin Vineyards and Winery in Paso Robles. Her experience with Pinot Noir includes stints with Bethel Heights and Lemelson in Oregon as well as a season overseas with Dry River Vineyards in Martinborough, New Zealand. Lastly, she was a harvest enologist for the 2008 harvest with Saintsbury in Napa. At Robert Mondavi Winery, Pao was a winemaking intern in their reserve wine program for Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Pao received a Bachelor of Science degree in Molecular Biology from the University of California, San Diego in 1997, prior to studying viticulture and enology at the University of California, Davis. In accepting the position, Stephanie commented, “The opportunity to work with a grower with such depth of experience in a site is rare. I look forward to meeting the challenges of the position and am excited about crafting high quality, estate grown wines that will continue to enhance Foris’ reputation both nationally and within Oregon.
Cellar 503 Tasting Notes
Foris Winery, Cave Junction, Oregon
2021 Cabernet Sauvignon
Established in 1976, the Gerber family has been farming grapes for over forty years, specializing in Alsace white varieties and Pinot Noir, which are especially well suited to our microclimate. Foris wines are defined by the unique alpine location of our estate vineyards at 1500 feet elevation. Located in the southwestern region of the Rogue Valley AVA, our wines are a true expression of the unique soils and alpine climate of the Illinois Valley in Rogue Valley, Oregon.
The 2019 vintage was a classic Oregon vintage with a significantly smaller than average crop, due to low fruit set in the spring. A slow start in the spring had average bud break dates, but delayed growth in the early part of the growing season. Warm late summer weather accelerated fruit development. And cooler temperatures in the fall led to a majority of the harvest occurring in mid October, similar to the previous two years. There was solid ripening despite the early frosts due to the much lower than average crop levels.
Our 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is composed of a single lot. The fruit was harvested in early October from Stargazer Vineyard in Applegate Valley, on a steep, south-facing terraced hillside with fruit that is beautifully concentrated. The fruit was hand-harvested, de-stemmed, and fermented whole berry in small open-top fermentation bins. The three-quarter ton bins are gently punched down for the duration of the 10 to 14 day fermentation. Once primary fermentation is complete, the wine is racked to French oak barrels (22% once filled) for 30 months of barrel aging.
With the extended barrel time, our 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is more aromatic, integrated, and mature at bottling than our typical Cabernet Sauvignons. It has black fruit aromatics with savory notes of eucalyptus and tobacco leaf, while the palate features black plum preserves, tart currants, baking chocolate, sweet bell pepper on a vein of tart acidity. The wine has delicate tannin, good acidity with persistent flavor.
Harvested 11/02/19
Average brix at harvest: 22.7
Analysis at bottling:
pH 3.49
6.5 g/L TA
13.9 % alcohol
Bottled 6/22/22
Cases Produced: 249
A Cellar 503 selection in March 2026, 2026 Women in Wine Applegate Valley | Cabernet Sauvignon
