Wine, etc.: Cabernet franc is so much more than a blending component

Cabernet franc has long been something of an enigma — once relegated in Bordeaux to a mere blending component, a distant star in the Loire galaxy and treated like a Frankenstein experiment in California. Today, however, its true identity is finally emerging.

When Adam Casto became Ehlers Estate’s head winemaker in 2023, he gladly assumed responsibility for its pioneering cabernet franc program. Established in 1888 by a Danish immigrant and later steered to prominence by Jean and Sylviane Leducq, Ehlers owes its acclaim to the couple’s devotion to Bordeaux traditions and the introduction of French varietals to St. Helena.

Cabernet franc has been part of the lineup since the 1980s — long before it was fashionable in this region.

“We were making cabernet franc before it was cool,” Casto sa