Cab Franc Zodiac

The first sign of the zodiac is a starter: brave, impatient, competitive, and happiest when something is just beginning. You like your wine the way you like your plans, with a little heat and no hesitation.

Cabernet Franc is a pioneer. It buds and ripens earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon, which is exactly why it was brave enough to put down roots in New York when the big grapes could not.

Your style

A riper, bolder Long Island Cabernet Franc from a warm vintage.

The bottle

Paumanok Vineyards on the North Fork, where the maritime heat gives Cab Franc real flesh and spice.

Pair it with

Burgers off the grill, or lamb chops with rosemary.

Sommelier's tip

Look for the warmest recent vintages on Long Island. Fire signs want ripeness, and a hot summer on the North Fork delivers it.

Venus rules you through the senses. You are steady, loyal, and stubborn about quality, and you care how a wine feels as much as how it tastes. Comfort is not a weakness; it is a standard.

Cab Franc gives Right Bank Bordeaux its perfume and Merlot gives it its plush. New York makes both, and a Taurus deserves the velvet version.

Your style

A Right Bank-style blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot, or a Cab Franc with some oak and age.

The bottle

Macari Vineyards, the family-run North Fork estate, for Long Island reds with a soft landing.

Pair it with

Braised short ribs, mushroom risotto, or a wedge of aged cheddar.

Sommelier's tip

Give it air. Open the bottle an hour before dinner, or pour it into a decanter, and it gets rounder by the glass.

Mercury makes you quick, curious, funny, and social, with at least two opinions on everything. You light up with variety, conversation, and a good argument.

New York Cabernet Franc has two personalities: the maritime Long Island version and the lake-cooled Finger Lakes version. Same grape, two voices, and you get to host the debate.

Your style

A side-by-side flight: one Long Island Cab Franc against one Finger Lakes Cab Franc.

The bottle

Bedell Cellars from the North Fork on one side, Hermann J. Wiemer from Seneca Lake on the other. Taste them together and pick a winner, then change your mind.

Pair it with

A snack board: charcuterie, olives, and something pickled.

Sommelier's tip

Taste the Finger Lakes bottle first. The lighter, crunchier wine goes before the riper one, or it will taste thin.

The Moon makes you protective, sentimental, and deeply tied to home and family. You remember everyone's birthday and exactly what they drank at it. Your table is where people feel safe.

Cabernet Franc is literally a parent. DNA testing showed it is the mother or father of both Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. It is the grape that raised a whole family.

Your style

A Cab Franc from a multigenerational New York family winery.

The bottle

Dr. Konstantin Frank, the Finger Lakes pioneer still run by the Frank family after four generations, or Macari Vineyards on Long Island.

Pair it with

Roast chicken, or the whole Thanksgiving table. Cab Franc is the best turkey wine there is.

Sommelier's tip

Buy a magnum for the holidays. Cab Franc's bright fruit and low tannin make it the one red that gets along with every side dish.

Ruled by the Sun itself, you are warm, generous, dramatic, and built for center stage. You love hard, host big, and never do anything halfway.

Cabernet Franc is the secret star of Chateau Cheval Blanc, one of the most famous wines in Bordeaux. The grape everyone calls a supporting player has been the lead all along.

Your style

A reserve-level Long Island Cab Franc with some polish.

The bottle

Bedell Cellars, whose labels are designed by major contemporary artists. A bottle that shows up dressed for the party.

Pair it with

A dry-aged steak, or lobster with drawn butter.

Sommelier's tip

Serve it at a true cellar temperature, around 60 to 64°F. Room temperature in a warm apartment makes any red taste hot and flabby.

Mercury in an earth sign makes you precise, observant, and quietly devoted to doing things right. You notice every detail, and you want purity, not decoration.

Cabernet Franc is the most transparent Bordeaux grape. It shows its vineyard, its vintage, and every decision the winemaker made. There is nowhere to hide, which is how a Virgo likes it.

Your style

A lean, cool-climate Finger Lakes Cab Franc with little or no new oak.

The bottle

Hermann J. Wiemer on Seneca Lake, a benchmark for precise, vineyard-driven Finger Lakes wines.

Pair it with

Roast pork loin, beet salad, or grilled vegetables.

Sommelier's tip

That green bell pepper note has a name: pyrazine. A little is classic Cab Franc. A lot means the grapes were picked underripe. Now you can tell the difference.

Venus in an air sign makes you charming, fair, and allergic to ugliness. You see every side of an argument, which makes you a great host and a terrible decider.

Cab Franc is balance in a glass: bright acid, gentle tannin, red fruit, and a little herb, none of it shouting. And it makes some of the best rosé in New York.

Your style

A Cabernet Franc rosé, or a light red served slightly chilled.

The bottle

Wolffer Estate in the Hamptons, the Long Island winery that made New York rosé famous. Or Channing Daughters for a more adventurous take.

Pair it with

Salmon, a cheese board, or anything off the grill.

Sommelier's tip

Can't decide between red and rosé? Chill a light Cab Franc for 20 minutes and you get both.

Intense, private, magnetic, and all or nothing. You go deep or you do not go at all, and you trust the things that take time to reveal themselves.

Under the red fruit, Cabernet Franc hides graphite, tobacco, violets, and wet earth. In the Loire Valley, Chinon from old vines can age for decades. This is a grape with secrets.

Your style

An earthy, structured Finger Lakes Cab Franc, or a benchmark Chinon for comparison.

The bottle

Bloomer Creek Vineyard on Cayuga Lake, a low-intervention producer with a devoted following. Compare it with a Chinon from the Loire, Cab Franc's spiritual home.

Pair it with

Mushrooms, duck, venison, or anything with truffle.

Sommelier's tip

Decant it and taste it over two days. Serious Cab Franc often shows its best side on the second night.

Jupiter makes you an optimist, an explorer, and a truth-teller. You would rather have a story than a souvenir, and you will try anything once.

Cabernet Franc has traveled everywhere from Bordeaux and the Loire to Friuli, Hungary, and the Finger Lakes. In the Loire they even call it by another name: Breton.

Your style

Take the road trip: a Hudson Valley Cab Franc from one of America's oldest wine regions.

The bottle

Millbrook Vineyards or Whitecliff Vineyard in the Hudson Valley, both about two hours from Manhattan and worth the drive.

Pair it with

Spicy tacos, jerk chicken, or Sichuan takeout.

Sommelier's tip

Plan a tasting road trip: Hudson Valley, then the Finger Lakes, then Long Island. You will taste three versions of the same grape in one state.

Saturn gives you ambition, discipline, and a dry sense of humor. You play the long game, and you understand that the best things get better with time.

Cabernet Franc is the elder statesman of Bordeaux, a parent of Cabernet Sauvignon itself. Good bottles age beautifully, trading red fruit for cedar, tobacco, and leather.

Your style

A structured Cab Franc built to age, or a bottle with five or more years already on it.

The bottle

Ravines Wine Cellars on Keuka and Seneca Lakes, known for serious, age-worthy Finger Lakes wines.

Pair it with

Roast leg of lamb, aged Gouda, or a serious dinner with a reservation.

Sommelier's tip

Buy two bottles of the same wine. Drink one now and cellar one for five years, then taste what patience does.

Independent, inventive, and a little contrarian. You root for the underdog, distrust anything too popular, and usually arrive at the future before everyone else.

For years Cab Franc was the grape wine snobs overlooked. Now it is the darling of natural-wine bars and the flagship of a New York movement. You liked it before it was cool.

Your style

A chillable, low-intervention Cab Franc, maybe carbonic or skin-fermented.

The bottle

Channing Daughters in Bridgehampton, one of Long Island's most experimental wineries.

Pair it with

Fried chicken, pizza, or a bowl of ramen.

Sommelier's tip

Put it in the fridge for 30 minutes and serve it around 55°F. Chilled Cab Franc is the most fun red you can drink.

Dreamy, empathic, artistic, and romantic. You feel everything, you live half in your imagination, and you are drawn to water and anything a little magical.

New York Cab Franc only exists because of water. The deep Finger Lakes and the ocean around Long Island soften the winters and make the whole thing possible.

Your style

A Finger Lakes Cab Franc grown on the slopes above the water.

The bottle

Sheldrake Point on Cayuga Lake or Anthony Road on Seneca Lake, both farming right where the lake does its magic.

Pair it with

Grilled salmon, beet salad, or pasta with mushrooms.

Sommelier's tip

Drink it by the water if you can. A lake-country red on a lakeside dock is about as Pisces as wine gets.