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Wine of the week: Cabernet Sauvignon
Updated: 01-Mar-2013
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By PATRICK STUART patrick.stuart@open-media.net
After Chardonnay last week, I had to follow on with a good old Cab Sav this week.
Much like Chardonnay, it is one of the great French grapes; this is of course the backbone of all Bordeaux and a variety that took the mass market by storm once it was adopted in the New World.
I should point out now that I will not be featuring a Merlot in this series as a varietal as I have yet to find a decent one made here in Portugal. I will instead round off this series next week with a very interesting wine made from a blend of Merlot with another of the great foreign varieties.
But back to dear old Cabernet Sauvignon - it has not been used much as a varietal here in Portugal. Many of the Alentejo producers use it in their blends, as do a few here in the Algarve, but I first came across it in Portugal as the base grape of some of the fine New World style wines that started appearing in the Setúbal region in the 1980s, most notably Quinta da Bacalhoa.
I do try to avoid featuring the same producers in this column, especially in subsequent weeks, but my search for a good Portuguese Cab Sav led me back to Quinta da Chocapalha in the Lisbon region, where I left off last week with their Chardonnay.
What impressed me about this wine was its elegant structure, herby freshness and soft tannins. Medium-bodied with a dry finish, this is more French in style than the full on, fruit-driven reds made using this variety as a blend in the Alentejo.
This is a very versatile wine when it comes to food-matching, but perfect in my opinion to accompany a nice roast chicken.
Promotional price for Algarve Resident readers at Apolónia Supermarket (valid from February 28 to March 6): €9.95
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