Cabernet Franc

Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire's Chinon. In addition to being used in blends and produced as a varietal in Canada and the United States, it is made into ice wine in those regions.

Cabernet Franc is lighter than Cabernet Sauvignon, making a bright pale red wine that contributes finesse and lends a peppery perfume to blends with more robust grapes. Depending on the growing region and style of wine, additional aromas can include tobacco, raspberry, bell pepper, cassis, and violets.

Records of Cabernet Franc in Bordeaux go back to the end of the 18th century, although it was planted in Loire long before that time. DNA analysis indicates that Cabernet Franc is one of two parents of Cabernet Sauvignon, a cross between it and Sauvignon blanc.

History

Cabernet Franc is believed to have been established in the Libournais region of southwest France sometime in the 17th century, when Cardinal Richelieu transported cuttings of the vine to the Loire Valley. They were planted at the Abbey of Bourgueil under the care of an abbot named Breton, whose name became associated with the grape. By the 18th century, plantings of Cabernet Franc (known as Bouchet) were found throughout Fronsac, Pomerol and St-Emilion, making quality wines. As Cabernet Sauvignon grew more popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, the close similarity of the two grapes was observed and theories emerged as to the extent of their relationship. In 1997, DNA evidence emerged to show that Cabernet Franc had crossed with Sauvignon blanc to produce Cabernet Sauvignon.

Wine regions

Across the world Cabernet Franc is one of the twenty most widely planted grape varieties. Plantings are found throughout Europe, in the New World, China and Kazakhstan. In many regions, it is planted as a component of a Bordeaux-style blend such as Meritage, playing secondary role to Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. In parts of northeast Italy, Anjou-Saumur, Touraine and the right bank region of Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc both plays a more prominent role in blends and is vinted as a varietal.

France

In France, Cabernet Franc is found predominately in the Loire Valley and in the Libournais region of Bordeaux. As of 2000, it was the sixth most widely planted red grape variety in the country. Other areas with significant plantings include the Bergerac and Madiran Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOCs). In the Loire Valley, Cabernet is widely planted in the Anjou, Bourgueil, Chinon, and Saumur-Champigny regions.

Italy

It is mostly planted in the far northeast of Italy, particularly in Friuli, but it is also found in the vineyards of the Veneto (where it is known as Bordo), and is found as part of some Chianti blends, even as far south as Apulia. Plantings of Cabernet Franc in Tuscany have been increasing in recent years, particularly in the Bolgheri and Maremma region where the grape is prized for the balance and elegance that it brings to blends. Italians wines often labelled simply as "Cabernet" tend to be primarily Cabernet Franc or a blend of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Hungary

Cabernet Franc in Hungary had gained attention by the end of the 1990s when in some wine producing regions climate and growing conditions proved to be not optimal for Cabernet Sauvignon to reach its full ripeness. Successful varietal examples from Villány and Szekszárd show great potential, some international experts declared that Cabernet Franc "found its new home in Villány region". Hungarian varietal Cabernet Franc is a typically full-bodied, moderately or highly tannic wine with rich aromas of spices, blue flowers and red/black berry fruits with a reasonably good aging potential of about 10 years. These wines typically undergo 12 to 18 months of aging in new Hungarian oak barrels.

In addition to being found in Villány and Szekszárd, Cabernet Franc is also present in Eger, and in South Balaton and Sopron vineyards, to a lesser extent. Cabernet Franc often complements Bordeaux-style blends from these regions and occasionally plays a role in rosé production.

Other European regions

Outside of France and Italy, sizable plantings of Cabernet Franc are found in Spain, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Croatia particularly in the Savudrija part of Istria, Croatia. This variety of grape is not very common in Spain and is to be found mainly in Catalonia, where it is an authorized variety in four Denominaciones de Origen: Catalunya (DO), Conca de Barberà (DO), Penedès and Terra Alta (DO).

Canada

Cabernet Franc is becoming more popular in Canada, being planted in Ontario's Niagara Peninsula, Prince Edward County, the north shore of Lake Erie, Pelee Island, and the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia. While it is most often used in blends, it is gaining some popularity as a single varietal and as icewine. Ripening about two weeks earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon, it often fares better in Canada's cooler climate than other red wine grape varieties. Ontario Cabernet Francs often add a characteristic vegetal, raspberry like flavor to a wine with moderate acidity.

USA

Interest in the grape started with California wine makers, who wanted to replicate the Bordeaux blend. In the 1980s, heightened interest in Cabernet Franc lead to an increase in plantings that helped push the total acreage of Cabernet Franc in California, most of which is in Napa and Sonoma counties. More recently the grape has caught the attention of growers in cooler areas such as Long Island and the Finger Lakes of New York, The Grand Valley AVA of Colorado, the Shawnee Hills AVA of southern Illinois, Pennsylvania, Michigan's west coast, Washington state and in the Monticello wine region in the Virginia Piedmont as well as the Roanoke metropolitan area, increasing planting in Missouri and Rocky Knob AVA areas of Southwestern Virginia.

In Washington State, the first plantings of Cabernet Franc were cultivated in experimental blocks by Washington State University in the Columbia Valley during the 1970s. In 1985, Cabernet Franc was planted in the Red Willow Vineyard for use in Bordeaux style blends. The first varietal Cabernet Franc in Washington was released in 1991 by Columbia Winery followed by Chateau Ste Michelle in 1992 with grapes planted from their Cold Creek Vineyard. In the 1990s, Chinook Winery introduced the state's first Cabernet Franc rosé. Today it is the fourth most widely planted grape in the state behind Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah. Washington Cabernet Franc is distinctive for its fruit forward style with blueberry and raspberry fruit. The characteristics vegetal notes is toned down in Washington with the wines tending to show more notes of ground coffee and olives.

Other New World Regions

In the New World, Cabernet is used predominately as a blending component and is found in scant amounts in Australia, South Africa, Chile, Argentina and New Zealand. As with so many grapes, Cabernet Franc came to Australia in James Busby’s collection of 1832. It predominantly grows in cool, cool to warm and warm climates such as North-Eastern Victoria, McLaren Vale, the Adelaide Hills and the Clare Valley. In New Zealand, many winemakers have found that the cool climate of their terroir contributes to Cabernet Franc-like flavors in their Cabernet Sauvignon and plantings of true Cabernet Franc have remained limited. In South Africa, Cabernet Franc has become a favorite of some of the country's boutique wineries.

In Chile there were around 1,180 ha planted by the early 21st century. The new cooler vineyard areas within Chile favor the grape, as Cabernet Franc needs milder conditions and poor soils. The new vineyards at Pumanque are planted with grafted rootstocks as they have been developed to adapt to prolonged periods of dry weather and water shortages, as well as their resistance to salinity.

Currently there are 500 hectares of Cabernet Franc planted around the Mendoza region, Argentina. Alejandro Vigil, chief winemaker at Bodega Catena Zapata believes that Cabernet Franc is the future for Argentina. Of the 500 hectares, Catena has planted 20 hectares and is planting 80 more hectares this year. “This is controversial, but I believe in the potential of Cabernet Franc in Argentina over Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, particularly in high altitude spots in Altamira and Guatallary in Uco Valley in Mendoza,” he added.

Source: Wikipedia,