Usually, Cabernets are a wine I drink in the cooler months of the year. There is more substance to them-they’re spicier, more bold in flavor and have a more substantial mouthfeel. Cabernets also go really well with foods that we tend to cook in the winter- stews, braises and heartier meat dishes.
But that doesn’t mean that you have to completely put away your heavier reds until the weather cools. When grilling beef, only a bold red will do. Hamburgers, ribs and steaks are classic grilling foods. Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux, Barolo, Zinfandel and Shiraz are all wines that are great with these meats.
The Yalumba The Y Series Cabernet Sauvignon is a Wine Enthusiast Top 100 Best Buy for 2020 and demonstrates a higher quality Cabernet Sauvignon than the price demonstrates. It has the fruit flavors of red currant, plum and cherry and the more earthy flavors of graphite, spice and eucalyptus. The tannins are bold, but not overpowering, and the texture is strong enough to stand up to the charred and sauced flavors of barbecue.
This is an Australian Cabernet from the Coonawarra region of the Barossa Valley. The vineyard is planted in well drained, terra rossa soil. The grapes are grown in a cooler climate, allowing them to develop more flavor and retain more acid. The thing that I find most interesting about Australian reds is that I always find a hint of eucalyptus, obtained from the environment, somewhere in the flavor profile.
I paired this wine with ribs and it was very good. The one thing I would say is that, while it paired with the slightly sweeter sauce I had on the ribs, this wine would be better with a sauce that was more tangy and less sweet. But it balanced nicely with the bolder flavors of the meal and was quite enjoyable. This is definitely a wine that was made for food. I think that it would almost be too much to drink on its own.
So, just because it’s summer, don’t discount pairing a bold Cabernet with your meal. It could be the last ingredient that makes just an average cookout something more special.