The Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is a wine brand from Terlato Wines International. They are the folks who imported Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio to the United States. Before they brought the wine Pinot Grigio was not a “thing,” now it is definitely a “thing.” Santa Margherita spun off a few years ago, but Terlato Wines carries on.
I received this Cabernet Sauvignon as part of a promotion because, in Chicago, the Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is one of the wines available at Cubs home games’ Wrigley Field. They don’t have vendors yelling, “wine here” you have to go into the concourse to get the wine. But it comes in a full bottle plastic carafe.
The last time I was at a Cubs game, 2020 was a total loss; four beers compared to a bottle of wine (4 glasses to a bottle) were roughly the same price. With the wine, you received all four servings at once, while with beer, you have to catch the attention of the right vendor. A bonus is a wine over beer means fewer trips to the facilities.
While most ballparks offer a decent selection of beer, having the Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is an unexpected bonus. Ballpark fare is pretty good, a major improvement over what was available years ago. Of course, the prices have risen along with the quality.
Lodi is one of my favorite locations for value-priced Cabernet Sauvignon. There seems to be a Lodi AVA style to winemaking, ripe, lush fruit, but balance. In the past, I would have recommended Chile or Argentina as places to look for well-priced Cabs, and they still offer solid wines. But my personal preference is Lodi.
The Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is 93% Cabernet, the tasting notes for the 2018 vintage have not been released yet. In the 2017 vintage, the final 7% was the usual Bordeaux grapes, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, along with some Petite Sirah.
The different blocks of grapes were fermented separately. The blocks can be from different vineyards, or different locations inside a vineyard, or maybe different Cabernet clones. The wine received extended maceration for 18 days; here is a link that explains what that means.
The Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is aged 15 months in oak barrels; they do not specify if it is French or American oak or both. 35% of the barrels are new oak. As a wine oak barrel is used, the amount of oak that it imparts into the wine diminishes until the 4th or 5th full use when the barrel is considered neutral. The winemaker uses a complicated array of new and various used barrels to get the desired result.
The Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 lists for around $20, but a quick check of the web showed prices between $15 and $20. This Cabernet Sauvignon has a moderate alcohol content of 13.7%, so let us head to the tasting portion.
Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 Tasting Notes
The color is dark but still see-thru black cherry red. The nose is brown sugar, ripe cherry, a hit of spice, dark chocolate, blueberry, vanilla, and smoke of the BBQ grill. The Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 has a smooth mouthfeel, solid tannins, and some interesting flavors.
It tastes blackberry and Snickers chocolate (not sweet), a shock of sour cherry, spice, black pepper, and a little vanilla. The mid-palate adds slightly fizzy strawberry, orange zest, a little cream, and soothing raspberry. The tannins are sweet and provide a solid structure. The acidity is balanced; it does its job and otherwise stays out of the way.
The Summary
- The Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is a tasty California Cabernet Sauvignon.
- I am from Chicago and Chicago has two baseball teams. I am from the Southside, which means I am not a Cubs fan. In Chicago you can not cheer for both teams, you have to choose one or the other. But with the Cubs serving Federalist Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, I think I need to take a trip up to Wrigley. Just don’t tell any of my fellow Sox fans.
