Cabernet key to Argentina's fine wine future Cabernet key to Argentinaâs fine wine future ...
Cabernet key to Argentinaâs fine wine future 23rd July, 2018 by Patrick Schmitt
If Argentina wants to gain a global reputation for truly top end wine it should focus on Cabernet Sauvignon, believes US consultant Paul Hobbs.

Paul Hobbs makes wine in Argentina at Viña Cobos, sourcing Cabernet from Mendozaâs Luján de Cuyo and Valle de Uco
Although Hobbs has his own Californian winery, he balances his time with consultancy work, and has played a pione ering role in the evolution of Argentinaâs wine industry ever since his first visit to Catena in the late â80s.
Speaking earlier this year about his experience of making wine in Argentina over the past 30 years, he said that he has âlearnt a lot about how Cabernet behaves in Argentina,â but stressed that there was still much to be done with this grape in the South American nation, which is, of course, best known for Malbec.
âI donât think Argentina has hit anywhere close to the high mark with Cabernet because all the attention has gone to Malbec,â he commented, when addressing a group of Masters of Wine, who visited the region in February this year.
âI think Argentina should invest more in Cabernet Sauvignon, because it is the international benchmark for all the great reds of the world,â he added.
Looking back, he recorded how Argentinaâs âinternational presence was launched with Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, which were then â muscled out by Malbecâ.
However, he forecast that Cabernet from Argentina could come back into fashion, because of its quality and relative value.
âWith prices getting increasingly expensive for Cabernet [from its most famous sources, be they Napa, Bordeaux or Tuscany], people will start to look for another region â" and I believe Mendoza is that region, because it can supply high quality Cabernet at affordable prices,â he stated.
Continuing he said, âI think there is a need for high quality Cabernet Sauvignon and I think Argentina has the opportunity to fulfil that need.â
Turning his attention to making the most of the quality potential for Cabernet in Argentina, he said that it was necessary to put particular emphasis finding cooler sites and making sure that vineyard management was scrupulous.
Comparing the grape to Malbec, he recorded that âCabernet is a much drier grape, its hydraulics are not as good as Malbec, which is like a camel, and Cabernet doesnât handle the heat well, so you need to consider cooler climates.â
He also observed that âCabernet suffers much more from botrytis, even though Cabernet has looser clusters â" Malbec is a more consistent performer in terms of resistance to disease pressure.â
More generally, he said that Cabernet is a âmore pernickety grape to grow at a high level to get the quality of tannin for age-ability, and you must do the work when it needs to be done; the âdo it tomorrowâ attitude doesnât work with Cabernet, although Malbec is more tolerant of that.â
Summing up he said, âMalbec is more like the Chardonnay of red grapes, it is disease-tolerant, hardy and relatively easy to grow.â
Due to the relative ease of handling Malbec compared to Cabernet, Hobbs said that âCabernet has thwarted us a bit in Argentina.â
When asked by the drinks business to comment on what makes Cabernet from Mendoza distinctive, Hobbs said, âI think it is more like Bordeaux than California, and you can get high tannins, but also quite a lot of fruit⦠Cabernet planted at a high level is fruit forward, generous, and rounded, with a lot of meat on the bone: it is like a USDA Prime steak.â
In support of Hobbâs comments, past Cabernet Sauvignon Masters by the drinks business have picked up on excellence of Cabernet from Argentina, with many of our highest scores turning out to be for Argentine Cabernet.
Indeed, echoing Hobbâs belief in its price-quality relationship, if one were to pick out the best-value wine of the 2015 Cabernet Masters, it was the Waxed Bat Reserve Cabernet from Mendoza. This wineâs appealing Cabernet character achieved unanimous praise from the judges, particularly for something under a tenner (if only just), although it does contain a minor proportion of Malbec.
The success of Argentina in that yearâs tasting was certainly a surprise to our judges â" who expected Chile, which also performed well, to be the better source of South American Cabernet.
And there were high scores for Argentine Cabernet at all prices levels â" from El Estecoâs £7 Cuma Organic example to Terrazas de los Andesâs £40 Single Vineyard Cab.
Such results also supported comments in an article by Tim Atkin MW in db, which highlighted the underrated excellence of this grape when grown in Argentina.
Similarly, in a discussion with db in Chile, Aurelio Montes, who makes wine in Mendoza under the Kaiken brand, said Argentine Cabernet was âamazingâ but âdoesnât have much reputationâ, because, of course, the country âis labelled for Malbecâ.
Read more
ARGENTINA TO CREATE 40 NEW WINE âAMBASSADORSâ FOR THE COUNTRY
TOP 10 INFLUENTIAL WINE CONSULTANTS
CABERNET SAUVIGNON MASTERS 2015: THE RESULTS
Source: Google News Argentina | Netizen 24 Argentina
No comments