Wine School-Cabernet Franc vs. Cabernet Sauvignon, November 4, 2013

 

 

Theme:  Cabernet Francs

Recently I was reading an article about the "other" Cabernet.  We are all familiar with Cabernet Sauvignon and even Merlot-the two more known grapes of Bordeaux.  Cabernet Francs are mostly used as a blending grape but I'd thought I would see how it stood alone and compared to the Cabernet Sauvignon.  So here we go!

The Wines:

Domaine Aimé 2011 Cabernet Franc

• Color:  Deep, inky purple
• Nose:  Blackberry jam with a vegetative aroma
• Mouth:  Definitely a young wine with more fruit than you would notice on a typical Cabernet. The wine has significant tannins with a long, warm finish.
• Price:  $14.99
• Conclusion:  The fruit in this French wine really popped as the wine opened up. As expected of a French wine, it paired well with the food.

Steele 2010 Cabernet Franc 

• Color:  Lighter shade of purple.
• Nose:  Wet forest floor with a bit of spice, notes of bell pepper, and caramel-especially as the wine opened up.
• Mouth: Can really taste the tannins and definitely oaky on the pallet. 
• Price:  $15.99
• Conclusion:  This was our favorite Cab Franc of the evening. It paired nicely with the main course and overall with the cheeses and chocolates too.

B Side 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

• Color:  Bright garnet
• Nose:  Tobacco and cardamom. Mary Jo also noted some bell pepper.
• Mouth:  This wine has light tannins with blueberry notes - more fruit forward than we expected for a Cab.
• Price:  $16.99/regular price $24.99
• Conclusion:  We all enjoyed this wine very much, although we were not expecting it to be the most fruit forward of the bunch. The tannins were balanced, making it the best wine of the evening for a sipper, although we enjoyed it with the dinner too.

The Pairings:

• Wyngaard Chevre Affineurs Goat Gouda:  Wow-we loved this cheese and it paired well with the wines. We liked it the best overall with the Cabernet, and preferred it with the Steele Cab Franc over the French wine.
• Cypress Grove Midnight Moon Goat Cheese:  Another cheese that we all enjoyed with all three wines. It paired best with the Domaine  Aimé.
• Drunken Goat: This pairing fizzled, it left an unpleasant aftertaste with all of the wines.
• Beef Roast w/vegetables:  First off, the beef roast was delicious! Mary Jo and Beth thought it paired well with all three wines, though Lisa was not a fan of pairing it with the French Cab Franc. A great match with the Steele Cab Franc, bringing out the best in both the dish and the wine.
• Ghirardelli Twilight Intense Dark Chocolate:  A very nice pairing, the favorite of the chocolates for the evening! The finish was fantastic with both Cab Francs.
• Lindt A touch of Sea Salt Dark Chocolate:  This was our least favorite chocolate with the wines. Would definitely not pair it with B Side Cabernet, but it was decent with the two Cab Francs.
• Lindt Chili Infused Dark Chocolate:  We do love this chocolate! Lucky for us it pairs well with many red wines. This evening it paired best with the French wine, Domaine Aimé.

Conclusion:

Beth:  We have had many red wine classes, but this was a first to focus on Cab Franc! The company, food and wine were wonderful as usual. My favorite Cab Franc of the evening was the Steele from California. It was wonderful with the pot roast, standing up well to the hearty dish. And it was definitely a “wow” with the Wyngaard Chevre. It was interesting to compare the two Cab Francs with a Bordeaux style Cab, although this Cab surprised me a bit, being more fruit forward than I expected. The two wine varietals definitely have differing aromas on the nose, with much more vegetation with the Cab Francs. Cheers to Lisa for a wonderful class and an education on how Cab Franc isn’t just a blending grape!
Lisa:  These Cab Francs were definitely a surprise to me!  After reading several articles on line and in books, I was expecting the Cab Francs to be less tannic and more fruity than the Cab Sauv. However, the particular wines we enjoyed tonight seemed to me to be just the opposite. My favorite pairing of the night was the Goat Gouda with the B Side Cab-yum!  I did, however, enjoy the roast beef with the two California wines.  It's always fun to try something different and share it with friends :).  As they say "nothing ventured, nothing gained"!
Mary Jo:  I think I may have found a new favorite every day wine during this class!  My favorite Cab Franc was the Steele from Lake County.  It was simply delicious.  For me, this wine was the best with the beef roast w/vegetables and the Wyngaard Chèvre.  Having said all of that, the B Side is truly another favorite wine of mine.  It was incredibly fruity and, with the beef roast, I found it to be too fruity.  None of the wines went well with the sea salt chocolate (very unfortunate, since that chocolate is amazing).  As far as the Drunken Goat cheese, the cheese's finish killed all three wines.  I am not sure I realized how delicious Cab Francs were!  Ultimately, this was a great class full of surprises.  Thanks, Lisa!