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Cabernet Sauvignon
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  • RP Digital
    Published on 05 Sep 2018

Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the most famous red grapes in the world and produces some of the most sought-after wines, mainly in the region of Bordeaux in France, where the grape is thought to have originated. However, it is an adaptable grape that can perform well in a wide variety of soil types, from the gravel banks of the Médoc to the iron-rich terra rossa soils of Australia’s Coonawarra region. The genetic progeny of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon is thick skinned, late to bud and ripen, fairly disease resistant and produces small berries that have a high concentration of tannin and coloring matter compared to juice. This lends wine made from Cabernet Sauvignon an inky purple color and gripping structure that can have the potential for long-term aging but can seem austere or muscular in its youth.

https://robert-parker-content-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/media/image/2018/09/05/723c364cb41e42748727861f194fafad_Cabernet+Sauvignon+in+St+Helena-Napa+Valley+-+going+through+veraison.jpg
Cabernet Sauvignon cluster during veraison in Saint Helena, in California's Napa Valley

There are over 300,000 hectares of the grape planted in the world, and the major countries of production are, in descending order: France, United States, Chile and Australia. However, plantings exist in many more wine-growing areas, such as Italy, where it is a famous component of some Super Tuscan bottlings, as well as up-and-coming wine regions in China. In the United States, it has experienced success bottled as a single variety, particularly in California’s Napa Valley, which experiences a long growing season ideal for optimal ripening. But it can also be part of a blend called Meritage, an homage to its famous French counterpart in Bordeaux. Fine wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon demonstrate a high degree of complexity, with flavors of blackcurrant and cassis framed by notes of purple flowers and savory herbs. These wines are typically aged in oak, which imparts hints of cigar box, baking spices, smoke and pencil shavings. In the cool climate of Bordeaux, where this grape variety can struggle to ripen, it is typically blended with other grapes to achieve a balanced wine; in cooler vintages, this variety can result in aggressively green flavors in the wine that make it resemble Cabernet Franc.

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