Wines made from Cabernet franc grapes of Beaujolais Nouveau
Discover the best wines made with Cabernet franc as a single variety or as a blend of Beaujolais Nouveau.
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.
Beaujolais Nouveau is the name given to Beaujolais and Beaujolais Villages wines that are released almost immediately after the harvest. Perhaps the most famous expression of the Gamay Grape, these light, Fruity reds are usually the first of the year's harvest in France, and are released each year with great fanfare internationally. For centuries, simple wines made from freshly harvested grapes have quenched the thirst of Vineyard workers at the end of the harvest in Beaujolais, but traditionally they were only distributed locally. Interest in the style spread following the reform of appellation law at the end of the Second World War and by the 1960s the first Beaujolais wines were widely sold throughout France as soon as they were released, often with the announcement "Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé! Beaujolais producers saw the marketing opportunities in being the first wine of the harvest and a "race" to get the first bottle of wine to Paris was set up by some of the biggest names, promoting the Nouveau style and attracting international interest.
Bordeaux’s administrative court of appeal has effectively validated the St-Emilion 2012 Classification after rejecting long-standing complaints from three châteaux. France’s national appellation body, INAO, said the decision upholds an original court ruling from 2015. It added the complainants still have two months in which to appeal the judgement, however. Legal challenges to the St-Emilion 2012 Classification have been a feature of the past decade in Bordeaux. INAO said it was ‘reassured’ by t ...
The launch of the 2022 Collection takes the total number of Last Drop releases to 27 since the company was founded by drinks industry veterans Tom Jago and James Espey in 2008. Tom’s daughter Rebecca Jago is now the company’s MD. This year’s releases include The Last Drop’s first Japanese whisky: a blended malt that includes whisky from the fabled Hanyu distillery, taken from the beginning and end of its brief lifespan (1980-2000), as well as malts from other unidentified Japanese distilleries. ...
Thanksgiving is an excuse to indulge in the company of your family – and Thanksgiving 2021 will likely see even more indulgence than normal as people celebrate getting together again at this time of year. So pull out your best bottles and follow these top wine serving tips for a successful Thanksgiving. Serve red wines at 16-18°C (61-65°F) Your full-bodied California Cabernet or Brunello di Montalcino may be described as at the peak of its powers when served at ‘room temperature’. However, ...