These Bottles Prove Why Everyone Loves Cabernet Sauvignon

• By WineBottleMag
• January 3, 2025
• Bottles Cabernet Loves Prove Sauvignon
• With 0 comments

Cabernet Sauvignon is the grape behind some of the most famous wines from Bordeaux, Stellenbosch, Napa Valley and more. In fact, it is one of—if not the—most famous red grapes in the world. Its black fruit, spice and herbal aromas, balanced acidity and prominent tannins have earned the varietal legions of dedicated fans across the world. 

However, like anything and anyone beloved by the masses (ahem, Taylor Swift), it also has plenty of skeptics because of its popularity.  

“I once observed, in the pages of this very magazine, that I am suspicious of Cabernet Sauvignon just as I am suspicious of tall, handsome men, because I think they’ve had it easy in this life,” says Wine Enthusiast Italian wine reviewer Danielle Callegari. “But of course it’s also true that I’ve been known to spend my time willingly with examples from both categories, particularly if they’re Italian.”

Callegari has good reasons to do so. “In the case of the Cabernet Sauvignon, a grape that can sometimes be a bully in a blend or brash on its own, in Italy instead becomes a focused, precision instrument, able to draw out the best of the terroir, magnify it and then project it,” she says. “Take the 2021 Ornellaia [on the list below], a masterpiece of a wine that feels rhizomorphic in its ability to show all of Cabernet’s best qualities while simultaneously exalting the other grapes it sits with in an easy, natural symbiosis. On the other hand, Il Borro’s Nitrito [also on the list] shows Cabernet striding alone, confident, poised, completely in control but never aggressive. In both cases I’d happily forego my prejudices.”

And, like those tall, handsome men Callegari is so (rightfully) leery of, Cab also thrives across the globe. 

In fact, Cabernet Sauvignon was the dominant grape in one of our highest-scoring wines of 2024. The 100-point Quintessa 2021 Red from Rutherford in Napa Valley—one of just three to earn a perfect mark last year—is “refined, detailed and delicious, with as much elegance as energy,” wrote Wine Enthusiast Napa reviewer Elaine Chukan Brown in her first 100-point score.

Over the course of last year, Brown, Callegari and our other reviewers rated thousands of Cabernet Sauvignons from wine regions spanning California to coastal Australia. We combed through our database to find the best bottles for every occasion and intention.

Best Splurge

Best Budget-Friendly

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Best Cellar Selection

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Best Organic

Best California Cab

More Cabernet Sauvignon Coverage

• Why Cabernet Sauvignon is the worst first grape.
• The best California Cabs to drink right now.
• How Cab became king: the rise of Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa Valley.
• The greatest grape debate: Pinot Noir vs. Cabernet Sauvignon.These are the best Cabernet Sauvignon wines under $20.

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