Wine School-Texas Cabs, July 16, 2011

Theme:  Texas Cabernet Sauvignons

Since I have lived away from Texas for the past 11 years, I decided it was time to check out the Texas Cabernets just to see how they taste.  Having more knowledge of California Cabs, I was excited to try a new locale.  I chose three from very different parts of the state- Lubbock  (northern), Fredericksburg (central hill country) and Bryan (east-central). Let's see how they add up!

The wines:

McPherson Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

• Color - Garnet
• Nose – A bit of spice, pepper and earthiness
• Mouth – A lighter bodied Cab with nicely balanced tannins, the finish ends with a bit spice, tart, red fruit apparent.
• Price – $14.69
• Conclusion – Alone this Cab was okay for a $15 bottle of wine, but when matched with the food the wine was elevated to a new level. We really enjoyed it with the lighter gouda.

Becker Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2010

• Color - Garnet
• Nose – Much bigger nose than the first wine with notes of asparagus, black olives and a deep earthiness.
• Mouth – A bit too much pepper on the mouth for us when we first tried this wine. Tannins were abundant. Once paired with the food the fruit of wine came shining through and the tannins were tamed. 
• Price  $24.99
• Conclusion – The fruit really comes forward with the food that really balanced the overpowering pepper we initially tasted. Nose on this wine was the most interesting of the night.

Messina Hof Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve 2011  

• Color – Deep garnet
• Nose – Floral note comes out with the first inhalation. Also a bit of a chemical smell.
• Mouth – Tannins are as big as Texas. No mistaking that this is the youngest of the wines. It will benefit from more time in the bottle. Definitely needs to be paired with a meal at this point to round out the tannins.
• Price $19.79
• Conclusion – This wine really stood up well to the dinner! All of the big, young tannins didn’t overpower the steak, but help the fruit of the wine shine. This wine will be interesting to try later when it has had time to age.

The Pairings:

Cheeses

• Marieke Aged Gouda – This was a new gouda that we tried this evening and we all loved it. It was definitely the best cheese of the night-pairing well with all the wines. I think “delish” sums up this pairing!
• Wyngaard Chevre Gouda – Although we all enjoyed this cheese, it paired best with the Messian Hof.
• Rembrandt Extra Aged Gouda – Again, one of our favorite cheeses, but was a disappointment with McPherson Cab. However, with the Becker the tarty fruit of wine was enhanced and the best match was with the Messina Hof.

The Meal

• Green salad with balsamic vinaigrette – We had to have our green leafy vegetables! Best to save the Cab for the main attraction, the steak!
• Mashed potatoes – The potatoes were delicious, but again, leave the wine for the steak, cheese and chocolate!
• Steak – What can we say-steaks and Cab-a match made in heaven. All of the wines were fantastic with the wonderful steaks Lisa’s son prepared for us. A big thank you goes out to Dylan, your dad trained you well. The McPherson was completely changed with this pairing. It took this inexpensive wine to a new level, really filling it out and elevating its body. The Becker and Messina Hof were also excellent with the steak. The fruit shined through with the Becker and tannins in the MH really met their match!

Chocolate

• Chili Infused Chocolate – This was a hit with all the wines. One of our favorite chocolates-best with the Messina Hof.
• Cabernet Matinee Intense Dark – This pairing was a mixed bag and we found it hard to all agree. Overall, we think it depends how much you love this chocolate, and Lisa does!
• Sea Salt Intense Dark – This was a disappointment, the almonds in the chocolate brought out bitterness in the wine.

Conclusion

Beth – Another night of successfully broadening my wine knowledge while enjoying the company of two great friends! I have had Cabernet from all over the world, but these Texas Cabs were a real treat. They were all enjoyable, especially with the steak, which makes it too hard to pick a favorite of the night. Although I did love how the fruit really came out in the Becker when paired with the cheese, steak, and chocolate. It was also interesting sampling from three different years, an excellent example of how the flavor profile of wine changes as it ages. Looks like I need to make a wine trip to Texas Wine Country! Thanks Lisa, it was a great class.
Lisa - Well I was pleasantly surprised to find out I DO like Texas Cabs!  I've heard they are bold and a great pairing to a big thick steak and I found out that's true.  For simply just enjoying the wine alone, these wines were not wowing me but when paired with the meat, especially the steak, they popped!  All three were very different-from the nose to how they paired with each of the cheeses and the chocolates.  I'm ready to see what else the state has to offer. Road trip!
Mary Jo - Texas reds were a first for me! It was a wonderful surprise! These were three very different and delicious cabs! They were so different, I am not sure I can choose my favorite! The Messina Hof, being the youngest of the three, was a big, tannic wine that could stand up to any of the foods served. The Becker had enormous pepper on the mouth and became more fruit forward with the food. The McPherson had wonderfully balanced tannins, a wonderful finish and we found it to be a lighter bodied cab. Thanks Lisa, for opening our eyes to a great region to explore! These wines were fantastic!