Wines made from Cabernet franc grapes of Central Otago

Discover the best wines made with Cabernet franc as a single variety or as a blend of Central Otago.

More informations about the variety Cabernet franc

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.

More informations about the region of South Island

The wine region of Central Otago is located in the region of South Island of New Zealand. Wineries and vineyards like the Domaine Amisfield or the Domaine Felton Road produce mainly wines red and white. The most planted grape varieties in the region of Central Otago are Pinot noir et Pinot gris, they are then used in wines in blends or as a single variety. On the nose of Central Otago often reveals types of flavors of cherry, perfume or pomegranate and sometimes also flavors of savory, sage or cedar.

What are the typical flavors of the Cabernet franc grape variety?

News about the grape variety Cabernet franc

Champagne still fizzing on fine wine market in 2022

Champagne prices jumped on vintages of several prestige cuvée labels in 2021 and the sector’s momentum on the fine wine market continued to appear strong in the first quarter of 2022. Louis Roederer’s Cristal has been particularly in demand and its newly released Cristal 2014 vintage was ‘selling like hot cakes’, according to a Bordeaux Index report on Champagne’s market performance – published last month. Bollinger’s La Grande Année 2014 has also sold quickly on release, said ...

Amanda Barnes wins John Avery Award for The South America Wine Guide

Amanda Barnes has been awarded the John Avery Award for her The South America Wine Guide book, which was described as ‘heralding a new era’ in wine travel books. The book, which is the result of a decade of research conducted by Barnes while travelling the continent, details the wine regions, wines and producers of Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Bolivia and Peru. It highlights over 70 wine regions and maps out 40 in detail — many of which have never before been mapped or documented in the En ...

Andrew Jefford: ‘I urge every reader to enjoy wine thoughtfully’

I first contributed to Decanter back in November 1988; the hundreds of columns and articles I’ve written since constitute a journey of discovery. I squirm, though, if I’m described as a ‘wine expert’. Whatever wine knowledge we acquire quickly cools, congeals and crusts over, like custard or gravy, as the years pass. The wine world expands at a clip. Every vintage rewrites history. It’s the chance to share discoveries – not just about wines, but about people, places and the act of drinking itsel ...