Wow the first bottle out the gates from these guys and it is already admittedly stellar. Grapes can be a tough ingredient to massage on a wild ale base, and goldens in particular can do sloppy tannic things or go apeshit acidic. Black Project holds the reigns on this complex jammy treat admirably and first crushes some preserves out of this destemmed banger. My@biggedt fear in these offerings is overextraction and that’s not present at all here, the coin lands almost Framboise side up: It isn’t overly vinous on the olfactory and instead leads with a raspberry meets blackberry sort of residual sweetness. There’s a slight sharpness but nothing bearing red wine vinegar or Korean nail salon levels, more like cranberry juice. The taste is very dry and almost hits the bicuspids a touch too hard but whips back on the throttle and lends a saving arm of berry purée as the car falls off the cliff. Michael Bay acidity with a James Gunn resolution. Swallow is long and acidic with a warming French oak quality that dances with the Smuckers factory playing in the mid palate. This is as good as the grape fruit stands from Casey but still lacks a touch of Brett B/L depth found in the Cfp series to get to the top podium. 

Still a shockingly well done and graceful fruity sipper. If I had to guess grapes this feels decidedly more Tempranillo but I could easily divorcees sipping this at a gender reveal party, or that “me time” weekend in Palm Springs. Janet from accounts receivable will drill the shit out of this and drive home peeling the fuck out in a Chrysler Pacifica, burgundy tongued, child seats be damned, Travis has them this weekend. Dry July starts soon and this season of the Bachelorette just isn’t scratching that Burgundy itch.