International Cabernet Day falls on September 1 - as good an excuse as any to write about the most widely-planted wine grape in the world.
'Cab' (as Cabernet Sauvignon, pronounced "cab er nay saw vee nyon", is popularly known) is a red wine grape that's actually a cross between Cabernet Franc (a red wine grape) and Sauvignon Blanc (a white wine grape). This apparently happened by chance in France sometime in the 17th century, but the joint parentage was scientifically established only in 1996 by one Carole Meredith at the University of California, Davies.
Cab is, of course, the principal grape in red Bordeaux wine (others are Merlot and Cabernet Franc), which is arguably the most well-known - and certainly among the most expensive - wine in the world, with such famous producers as Chateaux Lafite, Latour, Margaux, Mouton-Rothschild, and Haut-Brion (the 'first growths' or 'premier crus').
Called 'Claret' by the British, red Bordeaux was the favourite tipple in England till the 'Hundred Years' War' when the French in the 18th century made that (and cognac) unavailable. This led to the development of port and scotch - but that's another story.
Premium Bordeaux, along with Burgundies, are considered 'investment-grade' wines - they are traded on websites like Liv-ex (www.liv-ex.com) and Cavex (www.cavex.co.uk) as well as in direct trades, and the Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 index has gone up 16.2 per cent since December-2015 to close at 307.80 at the time of writing this column.
Then there are the Cabs from Napa Valley, California, some which were pitted against some of the best red Bordeaux in the 1976 blind-tasting organised by Steven Spurrier, known as 'The Judgement of Paris'.
Wines like Stags' Leap, Heitz, and Mayacamas were adjudged equal to (if not better than) the French wines by the 11-member panel of primarily French experts. This tasting, which established that French wines were not necessarily the best in the world, has been the inspiration for two movies: Bottle Shock (2008), and The Judgement of Paris (2016).
So just why are wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon considered so good?
Several factors contribute to this: the unique aroma profile of a good Cab (green bell peppers, mint, eucalyptus, blackcurrants, berries); its affinity for oak (which rounds off the otherwise strong tannins) and hence the ability to age well; the ability to blend well with many varietals to produce a superior wine; and the vine's adaptability, which enables its cultivation in a wide range of soils and climates.
In India, the best wines are all Cabs or Cab blends: Krsma Cabernet Sauvignon (Rs 1,500), SDU Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon (Rs 1,000), Grover La Reserve Red (Rs 1,100), Fratelli Sette (Rs 1,642), and Sula Rasa Cabernet Sauvignon (Rs 1,500) are some of the wines available in Bengaluru- unfortunately, most are sold and consumed too young.
Wines I've been drinking: Among the better Cabs I've come across is the Honig Napa Cabernet Sauvignon (Rs 6,268 in Bengaluru). The 2010 vintage is rated 93 points ('Outstanding') by Wine Spectator - a complex aroma of fruit, cherries, lavender, anise and oak and a terrific full-bodied soft taste with a finish that lasts.
Alok Chandra is a Bengaluru-based wine consultant
