Cabernet blanc, a new grape variety, makes wines worth tasting

Grapes come in a range of colors, sizes, and shapes, each with its own flavor profile. In the same way that granny smith and red delicious are different cultivars within the same apple species, the grape names that we see on wine labels — cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc — represent subvarieties within the main wine grape species. In today’s wine world, 99% of wines are made from the top 100 wine grape varieties, and the wine trade is dominated by just a dozen famous grapes of European origin. Every now and then though, a new grape with significant quality potential comes along that’s worth tasting, like cabernet blanc.

Cabernet blanc is a green-berried variety developed by Swiss breeders in the 1990sA cross of two red-berried grapes, cabernet sauvignon and regent, it is the most successful of a new generation of so-called piwi grapes, an abbreviation of the German term for fungus resistant. The piwi project aims to help vintners reduce their need for agrichemicals by breeding grapes with natural resistance to their most loathesome foes, the molds and mildews that attack grapes and vines.

Of these, cabernet blanc has gotten the most attention, turning heads with its combination of extreme fungus resistance and excellent quality potential. Its wines have an appealing flavor profile that tastes like a mash-up of sauvignon blanc and Riesling.

While many cabernet blanc wines are fully dry, this one from the south of France is made to be faintly sweet in the German style but nicely balanced — ideal for serving with Thai or Vietnamese cuisines. The wine’s golden color and splashy flavors of marmalade, dried apricots, and candied ginger make a memorable impression for this new grape.

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Sale price through Oct. 30, regularly $15.99.

Also available at: Williamstown Super Buy Rite in Williamstown, $14.99, williamstownbuyrite.com; and Total Wine & More in Wilmington and Claymont, Del., $18.99, totalwine.com.