Grape Background

Grape Origins

Cabernet Sauvignon is the result of a 17th century cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in Southwestern France, as verified by the UC Davis research team of Dr. Carole Meredith and Dr. John Bowers. ​
  • France
  • United States
  • Italy
  • Chile and Other Regions
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Main Region: Bordeaux
It grew to popularity in Bordeaux in the 18th century and began to spread because of the reputation of the Bordeaux Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
Main Region: Napa Valley
Cabernet Sauvignon reached even further acclaim with the 1976 Judgement of Paris. The story, told in the 2008 movie Bottle Shock, featuring the new Captain Kirk aka Chris Pine (available on Netflix), resulted in both Napa Valley’s rise to the international level and cemented the region’s relationship with Cabernet Sauvignon.
Main Growing Region: Tuscany
The grape, along with Merlot and other Bordeaux varietals, further developed in the Tuscany region of Italy in the 1940s. There, winemakers, including Marchesi Mario Incisa della Rocchetta, were inspired by the gravel soil, similar to that of Graves and Haut- Médoc in Bordeaux and unlike the soil in the rest of the Tuscany region. In 1978, Decanter magazine intermingled a Sassicaia into a blind tasting of Bordeaux wine and it scored higher than much of the competition. This international success started a wave of new plantings of Bordeaux varietals and helped carve out the Bolgheri DOC in the region
Chile
The 2004 Berlin Tasting was Chile’s equivalent to Napa’s 1976 Judgement of Paris. Though Chile has some of the oldest vines due to not being hit by phylloxera, it was not known as a quality producer. This changed when Viñedo Chadwick scored higher than the standard-bearing Châteaus: Latour, Margaux and Lafite.

China
​Recently, China has planted large tracts of Cabernet Sauvignon, but they are still developing.​​​

Growing Characteristics

  • Common Mutations
  • Climate/Rainfall/Soil
  • Harvest
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No significant mutations
 Growing Characteristic
Climate: Winkler Region II-IV
  • If the temperature is too cool, Cabernet Sauvignon does not ripen properly. This can bring out an herbaceous aroma in the grape. If cool weather causes grapes to ripen unevenly, a more selective winery can sort out only the properly ripe grapes, whereas a less selective winery may include grapes that are "ripe enough". This impacts price as there are fewer grapes to make wine.
  • Cabernet Sauvignon is late budding and late to ripen because it requires warm summer heat. This helps the grape succeed in warmer growing regions.
  • If the climate is too warm, the grape is not as complex

Soil: Ideal soil is composed of gravel with good drainage and low soil fertility. The low fertility puts the vines in a state of stress earlier in the growing season, which shifts the vine's focus from growing leaves to ripening grapes.
Info coming soon.

Wine Styles 

  • Single Varietal
  • Alternatives to Cabernet Sauvignon
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Single Varietal: 100%  Cabernet Sauvignon

Easy Drinking Red
Found in Vineyards with high yields and minimal winemaking, techniques including the usage of microxigination instead of barrel aging. 

Sugar/Alcohol: Medium-High

Acidity: Medium acidity

Tannins: High

Oak: Yes.  Used to soften tannins.  There is some unoaked Cabernet Sauvignon.  Oak used in Bordeaux is typically French 225 liter barriques.    ​
   • Single Varietal Alternatives
      Malbec, Tannat, Tempranillo, Touriga Nacional, Sangiovese
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Blends
  • Languedoc (from Syrah, Grenache, Carignan, Mourvedre)
  • Chianti
  • Brunello di Montalcino
  • Montepulciano d’Abruzzo
  • Rioja (with high % Tempranillo)

Blends

  • Bordeaux Style Blends
  • Cabernet Sauvignon - Shiraz
  • Cabernet Sauvignon - Malbec
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Bordeaux Blend 
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and to a lesser extent Carmenère and Malbec
Merlot is round and soft used to provide body.  Plum and black fruit character Petit Verdot provides tannin and acid Pullaic and San Juillian have more dominant Cabernet in the Blend.  Margaux stylistically varies on the blend.
  • Meritage
    The Meritage Alliance, formed in the 1980’s is a trade organization that governs the usage of “meritage” on the bottle.  For a bottle to be called a meritage, it requires the following: “Meritage wines are provocative red or white wines crafted solely from specific "noble" Bordeaux grape varieties and are considered to be the very best wines of the vintage.”  meritagealliance.com/
  • Super Tuscan Blend
    Super Tuscan is a loose term.  It refers to a wine that uses Bordeaux varietals instead of only Italian ones.  However production varies.  Some winemakers exclusively use Bordeaux varietals whereas other blend with Italian varietals with the most popular being Sangiovese.  In particular DOC Bolgheri allows wine to be 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, 100% Merlot, or 100% Cabernet Franc or blended with up to 50% of one or more of the following: Syrah, Sangiovese with under 30% of a complementary varietal like Petit Verdot.

    The difference between Bolgheri DOC, Bolgheri Superiore DOC is the aging duration.  Bolgheri DOC wine may be released only after the 1 September on the year following harvest whereas Bolgheri Superiore DOC has to be aged at least 2 years calculated from the 1 January of the year following harvest, of which at least one in oak barrels.
Cabernet Sauvignon- Shiraz Blend from Australia
Popularized by Penfold’s Bin 60A which was a blend of Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon and Barossa Valley Shiraz, and regarded as the best red wines ever made in Australia.  In this combination, the mid-palate of Cabernet is filled by the jammy notes of Shiraz.  There are no rules as to if the blend needs to be Shiraz dominant or Cabernet Sauvignon dominant. 
Cabernet Sauvignon - Malbec Blend from Argentina
There is typically a higher proportion of Malbec or a higher proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon with no defined proportions. Unlike in Bordeaux, these wines do not contain Merlot.
Typically found from Mendoza, which produces both grapes

Serving Suggestions

For all styles of dry red wine

Cellaring:
  • Age 30+ years depending on how the wine is made

Decanting Duration: 1 hour

Glass Type: Oversized Red Wine Glass

Serving Temperature:
  • 60 ºF to 68 ºF
  • Protein
  • Fruits and Veg
  • Herbes and Spices
  • Cheese
  • Desserts
  • Culinary Styles
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Protein
  • Steak, Burgers, Beef Short Ribs, Lamb, Portobello Mushrooms
Fruits and Vegetables
  • Sun Dried Tomato, Red Peppers, Caramelized Onion, Peach, Cranberry, Apple

Spices
  • Cinnamon, all-spice, Chinese 5 spice (cinnamon, cloves, fennel, star anise, Szechuan peppercorns), black pepper
Cheese
  • Cow's milk cheese which is semi-hard with extended Age like aged Cheddar and Gouda
Desserts
  • Chocolate, Berry Pie​

Grilled meats

Notable Growing Regions

Cool Regions: Winkler Region II-III

  • Bodeaux
  • Napa Valley
  • Sonoma and Washington
  • Argentina and Australia 
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*Sauvignon Blanc from France will typically have a region name and not a grape varietal on the lablel.
​Photo Credit: Loire Valley Wine/ Osmany Tavares
​Photo Credit: Bordeaux-tourism.co.uk
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​photo credit: Napa Valley Vinters
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​photo credit: Alto Adige Wines

Warm Growing Regions: Winkler Region IV