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Sale
Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $41.32 $47.22
This unique, zero-dosage Champagne boasts the perfect balance of dryness and sweetness resulting in a clean, crisp...
Sale
Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $25.19 $28.79
In 1955, a group of wine growers from the village of Mardeuil, a small village on the hillsides of Epernay, joined...
Sale
Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $28.00 $32.00
This lively Champagne is bright and balanced, with spicy mineral and graphite accents underscoring the poached pear,...
WS
91
VM
90
Sale
Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $7.70 $11.00
Aromas of red fruits, jams and cassis complemented by soft notes of pastries and yeast fruit of its aging in contact...
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Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $7.70 $11.00
Clairette, Grenache Blanc and Roussane, from vines of an average age of 20 years, planted on sandy and clay slopes...
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Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $14.78 $17.60
Sale
Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $26.65 $30.46
Partially fermented in barrique, the NV Franciacorta Brut Rosé is an accessible blend of 40% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot...
WA
91
Sale
Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $39.55 $45.20
A bubbly with richness and verve, this cuvee offers lilting apple tart, creme brulee and lemon verbena flavors that...
WS
94
Sale
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $19.25 $22.00
100% Cabernet Franc. Les Barnabés stands apart from Raffault's other main sites, Les Picasses and Les Peuilles,...
Sale
Rapid Ship
Sparkling
750ml
Bottle: $34.83 $39.80
Evocative redcurrant notes play on the nose. They become more intense on the palate where lively fizz lets them mix...
WE
94
DC
91

Cabernet Franc Champagne Blend White Rhone Blend End Bin Wine Rapid Ship

Cabernet Franc is not simply an important grape varietal for the fact that it is one of the most widely grown strains of vine in the world, but also because it is a vital grape in the production of many of the finest wines the world has ever seen. For centuries in its native France, it has been a varietal synonymous with elegance and high quality, and has become a key fruit in the production of the Bordeaux and Bordeaux-style blended wines which have gone down in history thanks to their magnificent flavors, aromas and levels of aged complexity. However, Cabernet Franc is also a wine grape varietal for use in single variety, unblended wines, and has plenty to offer on its own. Most commonly, it is renowned for its wide bouquet, which often includes fascinating notes of tobacco, violets or bell pepper over a beautifully pale and decadent liquid.

The sparkling wines of Champagne have been revered by wine drinkers for hundreds of years, and even today they maintain their reputation for excellence of flavor and character, and are consistently associated with quality, decadence, and a cause for celebration. Their unique characteristics are partly due to the careful blending of a small number of selected grape varietals, most commonly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. These grapes, blended in fairly equal quantities, give the wines of Champagne their wonderful flavors and aromas, with the Pinot Noir offering length and backbone, and the Chardonnay varietal giving its acidity and dry, biscuity nature. It isn't unusual to sometimes see Champagne labeled as 'blanc de blanc', meaning it is made using only Chardonnay varietal grapes, or 'blanc de noir', which is made solely with Pinot Noir.

The Rhone region of France has been producing superb quality white blended wines for centuries, and is a region highly respected and esteemed around the world, with plenty of New World countries keen to emulate the styles and techniques displayed by the historic wineries and skilled vintners of the area. The secret to the Rhone's success when it comes to blended white wines is the careful and expert selection of certain grape varietals, which each lend special features to the blended wine and bring balance and harmony to the bottle. Most commonly, blended white Rhone wines feature no more than two grapes of either the Viognier, Rousanne, Marsanne or Grenache Blanc varietals, and are renowned for their exceptional flavors and highly aromatic, floral character.