Australian Cabernet: Cape Mentelle, Margaret River 2012 – Pairing Rating: 10.0
High quality California Cabernet Sauvignon is stunning – stunningly expensive, that is. Consider the following: the 2008 Mondavi Reserve Cabernet sold for $75 upon release; today the 2015 vintage sells for $150. The 2008 Joseph Phelps Insignia sold for $135 upon release; they will be happy to sell you the 2015 vintage for $230. The Cab-Merlot blend, Dominus, has more than doubled since 2008; the 2015 vintage now retails for about $300.
What’s going on here? Why the out-sized price increases? Are the recent vintages made from different, superior vineyards? No. How about higher production costs? Maybe slightly higher due to rising property taxes but that’s about it . . . certainly not commensurate with the price increases. Are they superior wines to the earlier vintages? Too soon to tell, but any differences would be attributable to the weather. Everything else that goes into the bottle is basically the same.
California producers seem to be following the pricing models in Bordeaux and Burgundy, raising prices because they can. Their logic seems to be: “If Chateau Margaux can charge $800 a bottle, we should be able to get $300 a bottle for high-end California Cab.” And they will continue to do so if there are collectors willing to pay up. We are unwilling when alternatives abound.
For superior quality Cab, we recommend you look to the Margaret River Region in Western Australia – the subject of this post. But before we talk about these Aussie Cabs, we’d like to recommend a food pairing that’s perfect for all Cabs: Grilled Beef Kabobs with Avocado Cream Sauce.
This dish is irresistible to those who love grilled steak and guacamole. The well-seasoned meat delivers spice and heat, while the avocado sauce cools things down with a creamy dill finish. The flavors are addictive and the dish is notably easy to prepare.
Recipe: Beef Kabobs with Avocado Cream
Back to Australian Cabs. Known for its world-class surfing, the underpopulated Margaret River Region sits about 200 miles south of Perth in the southwest corner of Australia. Antarctic currents and Indian Ocean westerlies, combined with free-draining ironstone gravels, produce Cabernet Sauvignon that combines a lightness of touch with ripeness of fruit. These wines are elegant expressions of Cabernet, versus Napa’s typically bold, over-extracted style. Think Grace Kelly versus Amy Schumer.
Such was the case for the Cape Mentelle Cabernet 2012 ($75) we paired with this steak dish. Comprised of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot and 1% Cab Franc, the 2012 Cape Mentelle was fermented in French oak, 50% new, and aged for 18 months. Deep garnet-purple in color, the wine gave elegant aromas of black fruits, truffles and black olives. Medium bodied with a gracefully styled mouthfeel, the Cape Mentelle is a more versatile food-pairing wine than the over-priced Napa Cabs we mentioned above. If difficult to find, we recommend these other Margaret River Cabs: Leeuwin Estate Art Series ($55) and Moss Wood ($67 for the 2014).
Margaret River Cabernets: more elegance and better pricing. Let’s send that message to Napa.
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