Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux, Napa Valley, Chile and Bolgheri: structured reds with black fruit and cedar notes, made for red meat and for cellaring.
Cabernet Sauvignon is the world’s most planted red grape and the backbone of many of its most legendary wines. It was born in Bordeaux from a natural cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc, and today makes great reds on every continent. Delivered in 2–4 working days from Marbella, free from €100.
Blackcurrant, blackberry, cedar, graphite and sometimes a hint of mint or eucalyptus. It has deep colour, firm tannins and an acidity that lets it age for decades. With time it gains notes of tobacco, leather and truffle.
On Bordeaux’s Left Bank, in Pauillac, Margaux, Saint-Julien or Saint-Estèphe, it is blended with Merlot and Cabernet Franc on gravel soils. In Napa Valley, in Oakville or Rutherford, it makes riper, more opulent reds. Chile, Bolgheri in Tuscany and South Africa offer other interpretations, and in Spain it grows in Penedès and Navarre and features in some Ribera del Duero blends.
Young, powerful Cabernet improves greatly if decanted one or two hours ahead. Older ones, to separate the sediment.
