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Cabernet Franc represents 1.74 percent of the grapes planted in Napa Valley. When you consider the amount of wine actually bottled as a varietal, let alone 100 percent, that’s not an easy bottle of wine to find.
Most people associate Napa Valley with Cabernet Sauvignon. Yet that noble grape owes its existence to Cabernet Franc. In 1997 UC Davis Professor Carole P. Meredith conducted a study with John Bowers. Using modern DNA “fingerprinting” techniques, the two discovered that Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc combined, probably in a vineyard, to produce Cabernet Sauvignon. Perhaps Cabernet Franc should be considered the father of Napa Valley red wine grapes.
The only major wine region in the world where Cabernet Franc is the major red variety is France's Loire Valley and specifically from Chinon and Bourguil. These wines showcase the best of this varietal as fruity, violet and raspberry-scented, medium-bodied wines and are often varietally pure. This region also produces some lovely roses that range from off-dry to dry.
Cabernet Franc also has a minor role in Bordeaux’s Left Bank in the Medoc and PessacLeognan districts. In the districts of St. Emilion, Pomerol and Fronsac, Cabernet Franc is the second variety after Merlot. But even here, it typically only represents 30 percent of the blend. In fact, the most famous Cabernet Franc, Chateau Cheval Blanc, typically blends two-thirds of Cabernet Franc with one-third of Merlot.
Cabernet Franc is the main red variety in Italy's Friuli region, The “Cabernet” in a Friuli red typically is Cabernet Franc. In Italy’s Tuscan region three times as much Cabernet Franc is grown as Cabernet Sauvignon and is part of the great Super-Tuscan wines Sassicaia and Ornellaia.
Cabernet Franc typically grows in climates cooler than those required by Cabernet Sauvignon. Sharing many similar flavors with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc tends to ripen earlier and have lower levels of acid and tannins. Some people believe that Cabernet Franc tends to show more vegetal notes than Cabernet Sauvignon. Proper site selection, vineyard management and winemaking tend to minimize bell pepper notes to reveal blackberry, currant and raspberry components.
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