Cabernet Franc

Pronunciation: Cab-er-nay Franc

Cabernet Franc is one of the most known grape varieties worldwide. It's the lighter version of Cabernet Sauvignon thus people refer to it as the female version of it. This grape variety is one of the major components of what we called the "Bordeaux Blend" next to Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot along with Petit Verdot and Malbec.

This Vitis vinifera (common grape vine) species is small, black-skinned berry that gives the wine herbaceous characteristics such as tobacco and bell pepper. Though lighter, paler and softer in quality, this grape is a parent to most of the famous grape varieties today such as Cabernet Sauvignon (Cabernet Franc x Sauvignon Blanc) and Merlot (Cabernet Franc x Magdeleine Noire des Charentes). It ripens a week earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon and suitable to clay-limestone soils as well as on sandy soils if there's not water stress.

Planted in: France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Kosovo, Greece, Cyprus, Israel, Turkey, Malta, California, Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan, South Africa

Source: Wine Grapes 

A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavors

Jancis Robinson, Julia Harding, and Jose Vouillamouz

Published by the Penguin Group