The medal-winning wines from the Global Cabernet Sauvignon Masters 2022

Following judging last month, we are able to reveal the full list of medal-winning wines from this year’s Global Cabernet Sauvignon Masters, featuring outstanding wines from Washington State to the Western Cape, and Sonoma to South Australia.

With a low-yielding habit, and thick-skinned berries, Cabernet Sauvignon is best-known for yielding dark, concentrated wines with a high tannin content. Such attributes, while appealing when sourcing a drop for a hearty dinner, are daunting when it’s 9am, and you have several samples to assess.

But this year’s entries for the Global Cabernet Masters did not prove tiring to taste. Rather, they were a delight, reflecting a shift in vineyard techniques and cellar handling to produce wines with less weight and extract, more freshness and softness.

That’s not to suggest the wines had moved away from what makes this grape distinctive and delicious – a result of its inherent cassis and cedar characters, and firm structure – but merely that such Cabernet qualities had been harnessed in a less heavy-handed manner.

And that wasn’t the only general observation drawn from a day’s tasting nothing but wines made from this grape, or at least dominated by it. Another conclusion concerned a different Cabernet trait: its preponderance to producing Pyrazines; that note of capsicum giving a green scent and a crunchy edge to the taste.

While past Masters have noted this character cropping up fairly commonly, in 2022’s samples, it was rare, and where greener notes were detected, it was most likely a subtle hint of leaf, dried mint, or eucalyptus – flavours that brought a coolness to the wine, rather than an unripe edge.

So, it seems Cabernet makers have, for the most part, struck an appealing middle ground in terms of fruit ripeness, power and structure with this famous, and widely-planted grape. Furthermore, we had some brilliant blends, with grapes from Merlot to Carmenère, Syrah and Cabernet Franc helping to add complexity, and, in some cases, providing a touch of mid-palate breadth to the Cabernet, that can, depending on where it’s grown, and how it’s handled, be a touch austere in isolation.

But what were the highlights from the competition? While this was mostly a tasting of Cabernets from beyond the boundaries of Europe, the top performers were from California and Australia, although there were some stars from South Africa, Argentina, and Chile – and within Europe, Turkey and Italy too.

If one were asked to pick out a couple of exceptional wines, they would, in my view, be a pair of bottles at either end of the price scale.

The first of these was the Casillero del Diablo Reserva Privada Cabernet Sauvignon: a brilliant example of Chile’s ability to craft polished reds at a keen price using Maipo Valley fruit. Featuring a seasoning of Syrah and Cabernet Franc, although more than 90% Cabernet, this wine had plenty of red and black fruit, a hint of spice, dried mint, cedar and chocolate, and texturally, a medium-weight appeal with a finely-tannic finish.

At the other end of the spectrum, our priciest wine of the tasting was also the best. At around £350, Penfolds Bin 707 is expensive, and a highly collectable label, and having tasted it blind, one can see why. A complete wine now, but with many years ahead of it, this youthful taste of a powerful wine brought smiles to the judges faces for its pure, intense, blackcurrant flavours, chocolate and coconut notes, and wonderful balance between ripeness and freshness, roundness and dryness. Truly, this was a Master of its type – and our best Cabernet of 2022.

Please see below for a list of all the medal-winning wines, starting with 100% Cabernets, and followed by blended versions, for which Cabernet is the dominant grape.

Winery	Name of Wine	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Unoaked 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Under £10
Cramele Recas	Castel Huniade	Banat	Romania	2020	Silver
Cramele Recas	Sanziana	Banat	Romania	2020	Silver
Bodegas La Purísima	Consentido	Murcia	Spain	2021	Silver
£10-£15
Les Vignobles André Lurton	Bla Bla (avec toi)	Bordeaux	France	2020	Silver

 

Winery	Name of Wine	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Oaked 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Under £10
Distell	Nederburg Winemasters	Western Cape	South Africa	2020	Silver
Bodegas y Viñedos Pascual Toso	Toso Estate	Mendoza	Argentina	2021	Silver
Kavaklıdere	Egeo	Aegean	Turkey	2018	Silver
Concha y Toro	Gran Reserva	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2020	Silver
Holden Manz	Cabernet Sauvignon	Franschhoek	South Africa	2019	Bronze
Millaman	Estate Reserve	Curicó Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
Distell	Durbanville Hills Collectors Reserve The Castle of Good Hope	Western Cape	South Africa	2019	Bronze
Viña Los Boldos	Château Los Boldos, Tradition Réserve	Cachapoal Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
Siegel Family Wines	Handpicked Reserva	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2021	Bronze
Sur Valles Wine Group	Santa Alba Reserve	Central Valley	Chile	2019	Bronze
Fecovita	Finca Magnolia Reserve	Mendoza	Argentina	2021	Bronze
£10-£15
Veramonte	Reserva Organic	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2019	Silver
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	Cabernet Sauvignon	Limestone Coast/Clare Valley	Australia	2020	Silver
Yedi Bilgeler	Solon Attica	İzmir	Turkey	2020	Silver
Distell	Nederburg Manor House	Western Cape	South Africa	2018	Silver
Cono Sur	Single Vineyard	Maipo Valley	Chile	2019	Silver
Mission Estate Winery	Mission Reserve	Hawke’s Bay	New Zealand	2019	Silver
Millaman	Limited Reserve	Curicó Valley	Chile	2020	Silver
TerraMater	Magis Limited Reserve	Maipo Valley	Chile	2020	Silver
Siegel Family Wines	Gran Reserva	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2020	Silver
Menage a Trois Wines	Decadence	California	USA	2019	Silver
Viña Valdivieso	Valley Selection Cabernet Sauvignon	Maipo Valley	Chile	2020	Silver
Viña Doña Paula	Estate Cabernet Sauvignon	Luján de Cuyo	Argentina	2021	Bronze
ACW	Espíritu de Chile Explorador	Maipo Valley	Chile	2019	Bronze
Three Thieves Wines	Cabernet Sauvignon	California	USA	2019	Bronze
Heathcote SUB 3	Clava Reserva	Maipo Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
Santa Carolina	Carolina Gran Reserva	Maule Valley	Chile	2019	Bronze
£15-£20
Joel Gott Wines	815 Cabernet Sauvignon	California	USA	2019	Gold
Cannonball	Cabernet Sauvignon	California	USA	2019	Gold
TerraMater	Altum Single Vineyard	Maipo Valley	Chile	2019	Silver
Sula Vineyards	RASA Cabernet Sauvignon	Nashik	India	2020	Silver
Berton Vineyards	Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon	Coonawarra	Australia	2018	Silver
Cramele Recas	Selene	Banat	Romania	2019	Silver
Langmeil Winery	Wild Child	Barossa Valley	Australia	2020	Silver
Langmeil Winery	Jackaman’s	Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Silver
Terrazas de los Andes	Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon	Mendoza	Argentina	2019	Bronze
Château Tanunda	Grand Barossa	Barossa Valley	Australia	2020	Bronze
Viña Morandé	Morande Gran Reserva	Maipo Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
Viña Morandé	Valdivieso Single Vineyard	Maipo Valley	Chile	2019	Bronze
£20-£30
Distell	Nederburg Private Bin R163	Western Cape	South Africa	2018	Master
Millaman	Paya de Millaman	Curicó Valley	Chile	2019	Gold
Distell	Nederburg Private Bin Two Centuries	Western Cape	South Africa	2018	Gold
Distell	Nederburg Private Bin Two Centuries	Western Cape	South Africa	2019	Gold
Alto Wine Estate	Cabernet Sauvignon	Stellenbosch	South Africa	2018	Silver
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	Jaraman	Coonawarra/Clare Valley	Australia	2019	Silver
Bodega Luigi Bosca	De Sangre	Mendoza	Argentina	2019	Silver
Langmeil Winery	Blacksmith	Barossa	Australia	2019	Silver
Daou Family Estates	Harrods Californian Cabernet Sauvignon	California	USA	2019	Silver
Kilikanoon	Blocks Road	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Silver
Los Helechos	Cabernet Sauvignon	Uco Valley	Argentina	2016	Silver
Fecovita	Mundialista Champion Selection – Cabernet Sauvignon	Mendoza	Argentina	2020	Silver
Langmeil Winery	Kernel Cabernet Sauvignon	Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Silver
Château Tanunda	The Château Single Vineyard	Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Silver
Cramele Recas	La Stejari	Banat	Romania	2018	Silver
Finca Albret	Albret La Viña de Mi Madre	Navarra	Spain	2018	Bronze
Bodegas Tagua Tagua	Descomplicados	Maule Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
£30-£50
Chateau Ste. Michelle	Cold Creek Vineyard	Washington	USA	2018	Master
Gatt Wines	Gatt High Eden	Eden Valley	Australia	2016	Master
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	St Andrews Cabernet Sauvignon	Clare Valley	Australia	2019	Gold
Chamlija	Cabernet Sauvignon	Strandja Mountains	Turkey	2019	Gold
Gatt Wines	Gatt Cabernet Sauvignon	Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Gold
Kendall-Jackson	Jackson Estate Hawkeye	Alexander Valley	USA	2018	Gold
Masciarelli	Colline Teatine IGT Marina Cvetic	Abruzzo	Italy	2017	Gold
Mazzei	Philip	Tuscany	Italy	2018	Gold
Trinchero Napa Valley	Marios	Napa Valley	USA	2018	Gold
Schild Estate Wines	Lorraine Schild	Barossa Valley	Australia	2020	Silver
Orlando Wines	Jacaranda Ridge Coonawarra	Coonawarra	Australia	2018	Silver
Miguel Torres Chile	Manso de Velasco	Maule Valley	Chile	2018	Silver
St Hugo Wines	Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon	Coonawarra	Australia	2018	Silver
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	Masterstroke Cabernet Sauvignon	Coonawarra	Australia	2020	Bronze
£50-£70
Stag Leap’s Wine Cellar	Artemis Cabernet Sauvignon	California	USA	2019	Gold
Château Tanunda	50 Year Old Vines	Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Gold
Terrazas de los Andes	Terrazas de los Andes Grand Cabernet Sauvignon	Mendoza	Argentina	2019	Silver
Church Road	Church Road 1	Hawke’s Bay	New Zealand	2019	Silver
Col Solare	Cabernet Sauvignon	Washington	USA	2017	Silver
£70-£100
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	The Visionary Cabernet Sauvignon	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Gold
Hickinbotham	Hickinbotham Trueman Cabernet Sauvignon	McLaren Vale	Australia	2019	Silver
£100+
Penfolds	Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon	McLaren Vale, Coonawarra, Barossa Valley, Padthaway	Australia	2019	Master
Cono Sur	Silencio	Maipo Valley	Chile	2017	Gold
Penfolds	Bin 169 Coonawarra	Coonawarra	Australia	2019	Gold

 

Winery	Name of Wine	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Unoaked Blend
Under £10
Cono Sur	Bicicleta	Central Valley	Chile	2021	Silver

 

Winery	Name of Wine	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Oaked Blend
Under £10
Luis Felipe Edwards	LFE Cabernet Gran Reserva	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2021	Silver
Viña Concha y Toro	Trio Reserva	Maule Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
£10-£15
Concha y Toro	Casillero del Diablo Reserva Privada	Maipo Valley	Chile	2019	Gold
Robert Mondavi Private Selection	Bourbon Barrel-Aged	California	USA	2019	Silver
Concha y Toro	Casillero del Diablo	Central Valley	Chile	2020	Silver
Cono Sur	Organic Gran Reserva	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2019	Silver
Holden Manz	Big G	Franschhoek	South Africa	2017	Bronze
Viña Sur Andino	Cigar Box Old Vine	Maipo Valley	Chile	2021	Bronze
Concha y Toro	Casillero del Diablo Reserva Especial	Maule Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
£15-£20
Vistamar	Gran Reserva	Cachapoal Andes Valley	Chile	2019	Gold
Church Road	McDonald Series	Hawke’s Bay	New Zealand	2018	Gold
Orlando Wines	Bungalow Lane Barossa	Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Gold
Vik Winery	A Cabernet Sauvignon	Cachapoal Valley	Chile	2020	Silver
SeaGlass Wine Company	SeaGlass Cabernet Sauvignon	Central Coast	USA	2019	Silver
Viña Sur Andino	Cabernario N°6 Special Selection	Maipo Valley	Chile	2019	Silver
Cono Sur	20 Barrels	Maipo Valley	Chile	2018	Silver
Robert Mondavi Private Selection	Cabernet Sauvignon	California	USA	2019	Silver
Viña Los Vascos	Cromas Cabernet Sauvignon Gran Reserva	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2018	Silver
Yedi Bilgeler	Pythagoras	Denizli İzmir	Turkey	2020	Bronze
Top Wine Group	Sutil Limited Release	Maipo Andes	Chile	2019	Bronze
Luis Felipe Edwards	360º	Colchagua Valley	Chile	2019	Bronze
Viña Sur Andino	Cabernario N°8	Maipo Valley	Chile	2020	Bronze
£20-£30
SIMI	SIMI Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon 2019	Sonoma County	USA	2019	Gold
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	Taylor Made BDX	Clare Valley/Coonawarra	Australia	2019	Gold
Napa Cellars	Cabernet Sauvignon	Napa Valley	USA	2019	Gold
Langmeil Winery	Legendary	Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Gold
Kendall-Jackson	Vintners Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon	Sonoma County	USA	2019	Silver
Yalumba	Yalumba Wines	Coonawarra	Australia	2018	Silver
Santa Carolina	Reserva de Familia	Maipo	Chile	2019	Silver
Wines by Geoff Hardy	K1 by Geoff Hardy Cabernet Sauvignon	Adelaide Hills	Australia	2018	Silver
Vilafonté	Seriously Old Dirt	Western Cape	South Africa	2019	Silver
Viña Valdivieso	Caballo Loco Grand Cru Maipo	Maipo	Chile	2019	Silver
The Prisoner Wine Company	Unshackled	California	USA	2019	Silver
Charles Smith Wines	Chateau Smith	Washington State	USA	2018	Bronze
£30-£50
Trefethen Family Vineyards	Cabernet Sauvignon	Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley	USA	2019	Master
Vik	Milla Cala	Cachapoal Valley	Chile	2018	Gold
Belguardo	Tenuta Belguardo	Maremma Toscana	Italy	2018	Gold
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	Masterstroke Cabernet Shiraz	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Gold
Santa Carolina	Reserva de Familia Selected Casks	Cachapoal Valley	Chile	2019	Silver
Vasse Felix	Cabernet Sauvignon	Margaret River	Australia	2019	Silver
Kendall-Jackson	Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon	Sonoma County	USA	2019	Silver
Terre a Terre	Crayere Reserve	Wrattonbully	Australia	2018	Silver
Terre a Terre	Crayeres Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz	Wrattonbully	Australia	2019	Bronze
£50-£70
Bodega Luigi Bosca	Luigi Bosca Finca Los Nobles	Mendoza	Argentina	2018	Gold
Penfolds	Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz	Padthaway, McLaren Vale, Coonawarra, Wrattonbully, Barossa Valley	Australia	2019	Gold
Jordan Vineyard & Winery	Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon	Alexander Valley	USA	2017	Silver
Concha y Toro	Master Edition Cabernet Sauvignon	Maipo Valley	Chile	2019	Silver
£70-£100
Mt Brave	Cabernet Sauvignon	Napa Valley	USA	2018	Master
Freemark Abbey	Cabernet Sauvignon	Napa Valley	USA	2018	Gold

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