A lot of wining in a very short time...

Panini @ VWC - Yum!

Headed up to the Valencia Wine Company for the monthly meeting of the Grape of the Night back on the 11th. This month's grape was Cabernet Franc, and we had 7 wines to sample, ranging from inexpensive 'supermarket' wine to seriously overpriced.

Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire's Chinon. Cabernet Franc is lighter than Cabernet Sauvignon, making a bright pale red wine and contributing finesse and a peppery perfume to blends with more robust grapes. Depending on growing region and style of wine, additional aromas can include tobacco, raspberry, and cassis, sometimes even violets. Records of Cabernet Franc in Bordeaux go back to the end of the 18th century; it was planted in Loire long before that. DNA analysis indicates Cabernet Franc is one of two parents of Cabernet Sauvignon, a cross between it and Sauvignon Blanc.