Cabernet franc : un rouge floral, fin et peu tannique

Choose one from the Loire: these bottles are all available individually and they show the grape without make-up. A Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil at €17 or a Saumur-Champigny at €18.80 gives you the exact register: raspberry, violet and fine tannins. You will then know whether you want to move up in density, towards Argentina or the Cape.

Prices start at €15.90 for a South African blend sold by the bottle, and the Loire starts at €17. Most of the section sits between €20 and €50, which covers Argentine high-altitude cuvées and Italian crus. Beyond that, you are paying for rarity: Sassicaia from Bolgheri is listed at €399.

For a young wine, yes; half an hour is enough. Decanting removes reduction and softens the green pepper note that sometimes dominates when the bottle is first opened. For a bottle more than ten years old, simply open it an hour beforehand and pour gently: the structure is delicate, and brutal aeration tires it instead of waking it up.

It depends on the style. A light Bourgueil or Saumur-Champigny is drunk within five years, peaking at around three. The tannic versions – Saint-Émilion, Stellenbosch blends, Argentine high-altitude Cabernets – last ten to fifteen years. The great Tuscan crus go well beyond that, provided they are stored lying down somewhere cool and dark.

These are pyrazines, molecules found in the grape skins and broken down by ripeness and sun. They come through when the grapes were picked early, when yields were high or when the vintage lacked warmth. In moderate amounts, this note is very much part of the grape's identity.

On its own, it gives an aromatic, medium-coloured wine with lively acidity and fine tannins. In a blend, it provides the aromatic backbone: a few per cent is enough to bring violet and freshness to a more massive Malbec or Cabernet Sauvignon. A large share of the bottles gathered here fall into this second category.

When the single bottle has sold out, the packaging still in stock at the producer takes over: lots of 2 or 3 bottles, or cases of 6. The price per bottle is the same or lower. The product page shows the formats actually available, so check it before confirming your basket.

Between 15 and 16 °C for wines from the Loire, Brazil and lighter cuvées: any warmer and the alcohol takes over and the floral scent disappears. Go up to 16–17 °C for Bordeaux, South African and Argentine blends, which need a little warmth to relax their tannins.

The lighter cuvées get on well with charcuterie, roast poultry, fresh goat's cheese and above all grilled vegetables, especially peppers and aubergines. The structured cuvées want rare red meat, a rib-eye steak, a leg of lamb or feathered game. The grape also goes very well with a slightly spicy vegetarian dish, which is rare among reds.