|
Cabernet Franc is a black-skinned French-grape variety grown in most wine producing nations. The variety is most famously known as the third grape of Bordeaux and can be found in many of the world’s top Bordeaux blend wines. Cabernet Franc most commonly appears in blended red-wines, where it adds herbaceous accents of tobacco and dark spice.
As a varietal wine, Cabernet Franc is light to medium bodied and often shows vegetal characteristics, in particular green bell-peppers. This has led many wine drinkers to incorrectly identify Cabernet Franc as under-ripe Cabernet Sauvignon, or even Carmenere. This has been highlighted in Friuli, Italy, where what were thought to be Cabernet Franc plantings were later classified as Carmenere.
Cabernet Franc is commonly compared to Cabernet Sauvignon, which is not without justification; the Cabernet Franc variety is the result of a cross between Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc. But in the vineyard, Cabernet Franc ripens at least a week earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon. It has thinner skin and lower acid, but known for its hardiness and often grown as an insurance grape.
Cabernet Franc’s home is widely accepted as Libournais in Bordeaux. Within this sub-region are the prestigious villages of Pomerol and Saint-Emilion. This is where some of the most highly regarded, and expensive, Cabernet Franc wines originate, such as Chateau Cheval Blanc (which is typically around two-thirds Cabernet Franc) and Chateau Ausone (which is an even split of Cabernets Franc and Sauvignon).
Cabernet Franc prefers cool, inland climates, such as the Loire Valley. The appellations of Chinon and Saumur-Champigny are important historical bastions of varietal Cabernet Franc wines and are prized for their ripe berry and spice elements. Lighter examples from these appellations generally exhibit graphite and red licorice notes, with darker wines showing more cigar and leather aromas.
Outside of France, Cabernet Franc is grown in Italy, Slovenia, Kosovo, China, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and the Americas. In Canada, Cabernet Franc is produced as a dry red wine, but perhaps more interestingly as an icewine in Ontario. Further south, in the United States, it is grown in California, Washington and Long Island, frequently under the Meritage banner. Argentina and Chile also produce limited quantities of varietal Cabernet Franc wine.
Popular blends include: Bordeaux blend, Cabernets Franc & Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc – Merlot, Cabernet Franc - Tannat
Synynoms include: Bordo, Bouchet, Bouchy, Breton, Cabernet Franco, Cabernet Frank
Related grape varieties include: Cabernet Sauvignon
|
