Revisiting Casanel Vineyards

I went out to Casanel last year after they had just opened and had a great time. There was still a lot that Casey and Nelson wanted to do to the winery, so I thought it would be a good time for a follow up visit.

The tasting room is completely finished, including the downstairs area, and it looks really nice. Both the tasting room and the adjacent patio are warm and inviting. Nelson is still recovering from his surgery (we all wish you well) but his daughters took good care of us. The gazebo is almost finished and we were were able to sit under it and enjoy the feeling of being in the middle of the lake while we drank our wine.

As for the wines, they have added a Chardonnay (done in the Chablis style) to their line up, and, as I suspected the Cabernet Sauvignon has aged well. Its a surprisingly smooth wine, full bodied with lots of cherry and cedar.

The vines are also coming along nicely, with at least one section looking like it will be ready to yield good fruit next year.