Cabernet Sauvignon is the world's most planted grape. The love child of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc and very recognisable one. Although plump fruitiness is not its forte, but it has a distinct blackcurrant flavour that is well-loved and cherished. If under ripe, it is green, leafy, vegetal. Its true power is in the subtle, evolving flavour compounds that has beneficial effect through ageing. It is renowned and coveted, as from its home in Bordeaux where it is almost always blended, it can produce deeply coloured wines with finesse, structure, a sense of terroir, vintage characteristics and winemaking nuances and unparalleled longevity. It has an affinity to oak and suitable for bottle aging resulting the most expensive and well-regarded cru classes of the world. The 1855 Classification's five First Growths, Ch. Lafite, Ch Latour, Ch. Margaux, Ch. Mouton Rothchild, Ch. Haute-Brion are all Cabernet Sauvignon-heavy blends.
Cabernet Sauvignon is a late budding black grape variety, that protects it from spring frosts. It needs relatively warm climates to be able to reach full phenolic ripeness. It is a vigorous grape, so canopy management is essential. It has small-berries, thick skin, high levels of tannins and it ripens really slowly. In cooler season in Bordeaux, it struggles to ripen fully, resulting wines with high acidity, unripe tannins and little fruit. This resulted in blending with Merlot and Cabernet Franc, both ripen earlier. Vine-growers traditionally tried to dodge the bullet by planting a variety of grapes with a mix of early and late ripening varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon would provide the structure of the vehicle and to fill in the gaps a plumper and fruitier Merlot comes into the picture. Add some spice with Petit Verdot, and some perfume with Cabernet Franc.
Cabernet Sauvignon is prone to fungal diseases, powdery mildew, trunk disease, Eutypa dieback, and Esca. As it ripens late it needs to be grown on warmer soils, and because it is late ripening, it is vulnerable to early autumn rains which can result diluted flavours. If it is grown on warm and well-drained soils, like the gravel beds of Medoc, it can produce the highest quality of fruit. You can find top-quality expression in the Medoc, Pessac-Leognan, Napa Valley, Washington, Bolgheri and Coonawarra amongst others. It can lack charm as a single varietal coming from warm regions where it can actually ripen. You get the great structure but with a hollow sip, where the gaps have not been padded. It is popular to blend it with Syrah and other Rhone varietals in Provance for example Mas de Dumas Gassac. In Bergerac it is still blended with Syrah but for rose wine making just as very often in the Loire Valley. In Madiran, in the southwest of France, Cabernet Sauvignon is blended to the famously tannic Tannat resulting, full-bodied, age-worthy wines that can age in bottle for over a decade. In the South of France, it was an important grape, but lost out to grapes like Syrah, Mouvedre, Carignan that are more suitable for warm, dry climate. Sauvignon Blanc here would need irrigation.
In Tuscany where Cabernet Sauvignon can ripen easily the Bordeaux recipe seemed inevitable. The rise of the Super Tuscans, like Sassicaia, Tignanello, Cabernet Sauvignon was blended with Sangiovese, possibly a little Merlot and the elevage happened in new oak barrels, resulting, rich, spicy wines that could be only sold as an IGT wine, but for a hefty price tag. In Piedmont it is blended with Nebbiolo for the production of Gaja. In South Australia in the cool Mediterranean climate of Coonawarra with famous, free-draining terra rossa soils Cabernet Sauvignon is blended with Shiraz to add a bit of richness and fruity softness. Very often aged in either of French or American oak, possibly in the mixture of both. The result is ripe and mellow dark fruity, full-bodied wine, with ripe tannins, vanilla, pepper and a hint of mint. Margaret Valley, Barossa Valley and Clare Valley also produce Cabernet Sauvignon often than blended with Shiraz.
In California, in the Napa Valley's warm Mediterranean climate, with cool ocean currents such cult wines have risen like Screaming Eagle, and Harlan Estate, using Bordeaux grapes, mostly Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot blended. Both estates have been advised by Michel Rolland and both of them produce Bordeaux style blends. Robert Parkers fondness for concentrated, fruit-driven, full-bodied, heavily oaked, high alcohol reds and his very positive reviews lead to huge demand for these wines. Since the use of oak use is lightened and swapped from American to French oak, using much shorter hang time for grapes to retain a bit of freshness. Fresher styles of Cabernet Sauvignons coming from Washington state often blended with a proportion of Merlot. Its dry and arid climate and particularly long season, it has an hour more daylight than California, helps ripening, but its hardiness and resistance to winter freeze is one of the reasons why it is fairly popular here on the warmer sites of Columbia Valley, Walla Walla, Yakima Valley.
In Spain Cabernet Sauvignon is often a blending partner to Tempranillo in the Penedes (Bodegas Torres) and Ribera del Duero (Vega Sicilia) and in Rioja as well for Marques de Riscal. It is the most planted black grape in Chile, but it is mostly varietal wine from exceptionally healthy grapes resulting, exuberant wines. It is also the most planted grape in South Africa, large portions of it in Stellenbosch often blended with Shiraz, or Bordeaux grapes but varietals as well. Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignons are full-bodied, fruity, heavy reds. New Zealand’s Hawkes Bay on the North Island produces significant examples of Cabernet Sauvignon often blended with Merlot, Cabernet Franc or Malbec to compensate for the cool climate. Canopy management is very important here to reduce shading as the soils are flat, fertile alluvial soils. Great examples are Elephant Hill, Hieronymus, C.J Pask Gimblett Road. Where there are wine-grower in the world with land to be cultivated and viable climate to ripen this grape would give a go to Cabernet Sauvignon and often blend it for a greater experience.
Photographs by The Tannin Addict.