#14- Cabernet Sauvignon

Last Sunday the family was kind enough to host my birthday dinner- that thirty something dinner. My brother Craig barbecued the roast, putting his own spin on the spices and the way it was cooked. Greek and summer salads along with baked potato accompanied this meal. The roast was cooked perfectly, medium rare and still juicy on the inside! Now what put it over the top? I would have to say the wine.
The whole family was there including my sister Kristin who is just now kicking up her wine drinking habit again. In between breastfeeding and antibiotics (round three of strep throat in as many weeks), she has to time her wine drinking just perfectly. Luckily for her that night, the timing worked in her favour. Mother also joined us in the drinking of wine, of which there was a lot. But the wine of the day was the Cabernet Sauvignon wine that I was given by my Scottish friends Fraser and Katie for my birthday. Katie's family own a restaurant in Broughty Ferry Scotland and the Jim Barry Cover Drive Cabernet Sauvignon (vintage 2006) came highly recommended. An Australian wine from the Clare Valley in southern Australia, I was excited to open this attractive looking bottle of red. It was a gorgeous day outside, probably not the best day to be drinking a red wine but we knew the wine would go well with the roast.

The first thing we all notice about the wine was how exceptionally dark the wine was. Almost black or like Craig put it- "you can't see through it at all!". Incredibly dark, the wine glass sat there inviting you in. This was going to be good.

And the wine certainly didn't disappoint. Now, a Cabernet Sauvignon is a very popular wine here in Alberta and many countries grow this grape so it's not easy to stand out amongst other cabs when they're so readily available. But this one did. Oh boy did it ever! Many flavours jump out at you with this wine- the oak is definitely present but not overpowering, the herbs or spiciness catches your tongue and the fruits from the local area are blended well into this wine, leaving a delicious aftertaste in your mouth. This wine did not last long as we all had our glasses topped up quickly!

An exceptional wine, an attractive bottle, if you want a wine that isn't too exotic in terms of people knowing the grape varietal, this is definitely a hit to bring to any party or to show off your expanding wine tasting skills.

The next couple of wines coming up are white wines (we're having some nice hot weather, a perfect compliment to a nice white) and both are Italian wines. The next one on the list: Trebbiano D'Abruzzo!