Cabernet Franc in Third Place

Filed in archive Wine Tasting on May 23, 2006

I don't think, generally speaking, most cabernets get much respect.

I mentioned recently, in fact, that I sort of cut my teeth on cabernet sauvignon. I'm not the only grape lover who thinks cabernet needs a break.

From The Sad Plight of Cabernet Franc:

Cabernet franc is not, of course, a noble grape, a la cabernet sauvignon (although it did, with the otherwise undistinguished sauvignon blanc, help sire the latter). On its own, cabernet franc lacks the structure and heft to produce candidates for immortality. Even Cheval Blanc includes a big dollop of merlot, and in the 2001 vintage, merlot actually took over the pilot's seat. On the left bank of Bordeaux, where the likes of Latour, Margaux, and Haut-Brion reign, cabernet franc is the third grape, after cabernet sauvignon (the backbone of the Medoc wines) and merlot; a small amount is added to the mix for aromatic purposes and to help make the wines a little less stern than they would otherwise be.

Along with merlot and chardonnay, cabernet franc put in a cameo in the movie Sideways, and it, too, was disparaged by Miles, the main character, played by Paul Giamatti. But unlike merlot and chardonnay, cabernet franc got the last laugh: Late in the film, Miles, in a fit of despondency, sucks down his prized bottle of 1961 Cheval Blanc at a local burger joint, evidently having forgotten that he doesn't like cabernet franc.