Cabernet Franc is grown all over the world, but the best expressions are generally found in France, specifically in the Loire, South West, and Bordeaux as a key part of many blends. Medium bodied and more aromatic than Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc’s aromas can have an herbaceous tinge depending on the ripeness level.
Merlot
Mer-LO
It would be easier to detail where Merlot is not grown than vice-versa, as it is one of the most widely planted grapes in the world. Depending on the terroir, the style can vary quite a bit. Generally, Merlot is fleshy and more fruit driven and with less aggressive tannins than its oft more austere blending partner, Cabernet Sauvignon, which also makes it more accessible in its youth. The quality and character can vary from crowd pleasing sweet plummy fruit to extraordinary complex velvety texture of a great right bank Bordeaux.
Ausone of Saint-Émilion is named after Decimus Magnus Ausonius, a writer, poet, vine grower, and champion of Bordeaux from the Gallo-Roman era. Under the longtime leadership of the Vauthier family, the seven-hectare estate uses biodynamic and organic practices to grow predominantly cabernet franc as well as some merlot on vines that average 50-years-old.
Ausone is positioned on the side of a hill called Roc blanca, Spanish for “white rock.” It is a limestone outcropping with steep southeast-facing hills and terraces, creating a unique microclimate that has protected it from the risks of frost, which have decimated vineyards in years like 1956.
The wines of Ausone are intense yet silky, with a depth of fruit, minerality, and spice that unfold in layers, expressing the special qualities of the terroir.
