Cabernet Sauvignon

Straight Cabernet, or a Blend?

More than half of this page is blends, and nobody here is apologizing for that. Cabernet is thick-skinned and slow, so in a cool climate it gains from Merlot's flesh and Cabernet Franc's perfume. Bordeaux worked this out a long time ago. Canadian labels call it Meritage when the blend follows that recipe.

Want the grape unaccompanied? Look for the varietal name standing alone. For the softer version of the same idea, Merlot and Cabernet Franc are the neighbours worth meeting.

Where It Ripens in Canada

The South Okanagan does the heavy lifting: long hot days, cold nights, and just enough season to ripen Cabernet fully. Niagara manages it in warmer vintages and blends it in the rest. Where a bottle names its appellation, expect Okanagan Valley or Niagara Peninsula, with sub-appellations like Niagara Lakeshore and Vinemount Ridge turning up too.

Expect oak. Most of these spend time in barrel, and that is where the cedar and dark spice come from.

What to Spend

This is the premium end of the catalogue. Plenty of it sits above $40, the cheaper bottles are mostly blends, and the dearest items here are cases and packs. A good deal of it never reaches a liquor board shelf, which is rather the point.

For more of the same weight, try our full-bodied reds or the wider Canadian red wine selection.