2022 Black Ankle Vineyards Crumbling Rock Frederick, Maryland

A classic Crumbling Rock, this opens with aromatics of cedar, violets, sweet tobacco, and cassis leading to a youthful and full-bodied palate with dark berries, mocha, and a slightly smoky note on the finish. Delicious now, but this is going to age magnificently!

4 7 % C a b e r n e t S a u v i g n o n , 2 9 % C a b e r n e t F r a n c , 1 8 %  M e r l o t ,

6 % P e t i t V e r d o t

 1 8 m o n t h s  i n o a k b a r r e ls, 6 8 % n e w , 3 2 % u s e d

Rarely do we get generosity and high quality in the same year. However, the 2022 vintage gifted us with both! A warm dry summer with just enough rain to keep things humming along was followed by a very dry harvest season, with only one significant rain event. The
wines have very good acidity, even better than the 2021's. The reds were uniformly healthy and we got to pick them at our leisure, so we could wait for just the right ripeness levels without worrying about weather events. We got our first wines from Live Edge this year and, while we don't expect the same level of complexity we get from the
older vines at BAV, we were happy with the quality of the fruit.

Estate-grown and sustainably grown on our 146 acre farm, our grapes are tended by hand throughout the growing season and are harvested by hand in the fall. Crumbling Rock is one of our preeminent reds, one of several Bordeaux-Style reds. We will use varying portions of our Bordeaux grape varieties (Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon,
Malbec, Merlot, and Petit Verdot) in making our Crumbling Rock. While the blending varies vintage to vintage, we always strive to make Crumbling Rock “feel” the same way: rich, elegant, smooth – a full mouthfeel.