WineAlign - Awards - 2019 NWAC Cabernet Sauvignon

Results of the 2019 WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada (The Nationals)

Cabernet Sauvignon

Category Overview by Judge Sara d’Amato

From an international standpoint, Canada has not made itself known as a hub of fine cabernet sauvignon. Aside from the obvious small quantity of production, the few pockets of terroir where cabernet sauvignon can reliably ripen in Canada are few. Critics and producers express their frustration that consumer demand for this variety causes it to be grown in areas where it, perhaps, shouldn’t be. Needless to say, controversy abounds. Many critics wouldn’t peg cabernet sauvignon as a variety that is likely to move mountains, but having said this, many critics outside the county are unlikely to have tried those of the southern Okanagan Valley that swept the gold category this year. Unsurprisingly, every single gold medal this year was awarded to wine from to Okanagan Valley fruit. Yet, this does not mean that other parts of Canada, namely Niagara, are incapable of making soul-stirring cabernet sauvignon. In exceptional years, Niagara can prove serendipitous when it comes to cabernet sauvignon. Stylistically speaking, average to warm years in Niagara and slightly cooler vintages in the southern Okanagan are capable of producing left bank Bordelaise styles of cabernet sauvignon that are taught, nervy and with the potential for exceptional ageing.

(Jump straight to the medal winners.)

What do we love about cabernet sauvignon so much anyway? We consumers seem to have a significant impact in permanentizing its worth and necessity in Canada. It is impossible to deny the prestige of the variety as being an important factor. Cabernet sauvignon as a status symbol is largely attributed to its left bank Bordelaise eminence. Napa Valley’s appropriation of the variety in high quality, high priced and cult label followings, does little to reduce our interest. In terms of character, we love the ability that it has to age due to its high concentration of tannins and acids. Curiously, we seem to love the austerity it can impart, its ability to appear youthful even with age. Finally, but not in totality, we appreciate the impact, concentration and overall darkness of the variety. As satisfying as a ripe, oozing cabernet sauvignon can be, on the underripe extreme it can be challenging: too drying, too green and even too tart. In years such as the cool and wet 2017 of Niagara for example, much cabernet sauvignon just couldn’t fully ripen. Despite a warm autumn, ripeness fell too far behind for this variety which needs more heat and sunshine than often even an average year can provide.

Both expensive to grow and to buy, cabernet sauvignon garnered $1,979 per tonne in 2018 according to the Grape Growers of Ontario. The only grapes to command a higher price were syrah and pinot noir. The judges reliably managed to pick out those cabernets at a premium price having given 6 wines gold that ranged between $31.90 and $109.90. Other than the relatively value priced Desert Hills at $31.90, all other wines were above $45. Our palates seemed to identify the price-quality ratio in these wines, perhaps a testament to their pedigree.

And the winners are…

Blasted Church 2016 Small Blessings Cabernet Sauvignon, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Burrowing Owl 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Desert Hills 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Mission Hill 2017 Terroir Collection Border Vista Cabernet Sauvignon, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Noble Ridge 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon King’s Ransom , Okanagan Falls, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia