Cabernet Franc

This is another nice value play from Argentina.  It is an upfront, tasty wine that is affordable to most.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with plums, black cherries and dust.  Full bodied.  This is ripe but dry.  Lots of juicy black cherries and plums on the palate.  Light tannins.  Easy to drink.  This works great on its own and would work well with a burger off the grill.  Drink over the next few years.  

This is a Cabernet Franc from Tuscany.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black cherries, black raspberries, dark chocolate, slight floral notes and a hint of cigar box.  On the palate, this is ripe and a big wine.  Despite being 14 years old, it still shows medium tannins and fresh fruits.  Black cherries, some blueberries, chocolate and tobacco.  Nice balance.  Smooth finish.  This can compete with Cab Francs from anywhere.  It will easily do another decade.  A nice match for a steak or roast.  

This is one of the best Merlot's made anywhere.  Period.  The attention to detail and the quality of fruit is amazing.  Certainly some vintages are better than others, but it is always phenomenal.  There is 5% Cabernet Franc in the blend.  Deep ruby/purple in color, opaque and shimmering bright.  A wonderful nose of black cherries, plums, slight kirsch, slight dark chocolate, and minerals.  Full bodied with a lush texture.  Flavors of sour cherries, black raspberries and plums intertwined with minerality, dark chocolate and slight spice.  Light tannins.  Lots of verve, it dances on the tong

This wine was from a 50ml screw capped bottle.  I don't know where it came from, but it had been sitting in the door of our kitchen fridge for a decade and finally, I decided that we needed the room.  :-)  It actually showed quite well.  It had a ruby/orange color to it, clear and bright.  The nose was interesting with candied cherries and a slight medicinal quality to it.  On the palate, this is viscous.  Sweet cherries with a bit our a sour candy too.  Slight depth.  Long finish.  A little (which is all we had), went a long way.  This would be a tough food match but maybe a small piece of

This is a top quality winery from Southern California.  The El Ama is one of the top Cabernet Francs made anywhere.  Actually, it is 75% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot.  It is ripe and delicious.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose has black cherries, black olives, cigar box and spice.  Full bodied with a lush texture.  There is a nice depth with bold black cherry fruit over a nice earthiness.  Good finish.  This is just getting to full maturity but should easily go another decade.  A nice match for lamb or other grilled meats.  

This is the flagship wine from Justin.  It is a Bordeaux styled blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc and 7% Merlot.  it sees 100% new French oak.  This is a very nice wine that is pretty unique given the number of similarly proportioned wines in France, Napa and the rest of the world.  It has a deeper ruby color with some purple swirls, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black currants, some black cherries with a bit of baking spice and slight dark chocolate notes.  On the palate, this has a nice juicy, chewy texture.  Lots of black cherry fruit and spice.  Though plenty

This is a "right bank" Bordeaux blend from Paso Robles.  It is 65% Cabernet Franc and 35% Merlot and sees 44% new French oak for 20 months..  Ruby/purple in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose is nice with black cherries, dusty, baking spices, slight tobacco and cedar.  On the palate, this has thick tannins at this stage.  Lots of cherries, red currants, spice and slight earthiness.  It is very tight right now but opened up nicely on day 2.  If drinking now, give it a good decant.  This should improve a bit over the next few years and be good for seven to ten years after that.  It has

This is a second wine of Chateau Montrose.  Tasted blind, with a tasting group, this was disappointing.  It finished in last place for me and close to that for the group.  It is a fine wine, but more was expected once the label was revealed.  Purple in color, shimmering bright and opaque.  The nose has cherries, black cherries and spice.  On the palate, light tannins and sour cherries.  Easy drinking.  It is a blend of 52% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 13% Cabernet Franc.  Right now, the Merlot dominates.  Of course, with some, the Cabs could wake up and get the party started.  Based

`This is a 100% Cabernet Franc froma Co-Op in Saumur.  An inexpensive red, it is an excellent value.  Inky purple in color.  The nose is light but has cherries, plums, green bell pepper and a bit of a steely note.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, there is more present.  Plums and cherries with a bit of a green streak.  Light tannins.  With air the red fruits come out more.  Moderate finish.  This probably won't get better but should drink well for five to seven years.  It is better with a bit of food.  Stews or Chili would work well.  For $13, its hard to expect more from a red.  

From one of the top red producers in the Loire Valley.  2005 was a strong vintage and allowed the Cabernet Franc to get ripe.  This was a great showing for this wine.  It was identifiable as the Loire with everything good about it.  Deep ruby in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is great.  Earthy, slight barnyard, cherries, slight black cherries and an interesting clove note.  With air, a fresh tobacco note comes out.  On the palate, this is soft.  A nicely layered and complex texture.  Layers of cherries, slight black cherries, fresh hay and slight earthiness.  There are still lig