Wines made from Cabernet franc grapes of Crémant d'Alsace
Discover the best wines made with Cabernet franc as a single variety or as a blend of Crémant d'Alsace.
Cabernet Franc is one of the oldest red grape varieties in Bordeaux. The Libourne region is its terroir where it develops best. The terroirs of Saint-Emilion and Fronsac allow it to mature and develop its best range of aromas. It is also the majority in many blends. The very famous Château Cheval Blanc, for example, uses 60% Cabernet Franc. The wines produced with Cabernet Franc are medium in colour with fine tannins and subtle aromas of small red fruits and spices. When blended with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, it brings complexity and a bouquet of aromas to the wine. It produces fruity wines that can be drunk quite quickly, but whose great vintages can be kept for a long time. It is an earlier grape variety than Cabernet Sauvignon, which means that it is planted as far north as the Loire Valley. In Anjou, it is also used to make sweet rosé wines. Cabernet Franc is now used in some twenty countries in Europe and throughout the world.
Crémant d'Alsace is the appellation for white and rosé Sparkling wines from the Alsace wine region in northeastern France. Introduced in August 1976, the appellation now accounts for about a quarter of the region's production, or about 45 million bottles per year, up from 31 million in 2009. Outside of Champagne (240km to the west), it is the dominant French sparkling wine appellation, with more than half of all crémant production. The cooperatives are the most important players, with Wolfberger alone producing 6 to 7 million bottles.