California Cabernet

The wine that made California famous. It was a victory by Stag's Leap Wine Cellar's Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon in the famous Paris Tasting of 1976 that put California wine on the map of the world's great wines.

While Napa Valley remains the pinnacle of Cabernet in the US, you'll find some great Cabs from Sonoma, Paso Robles and elsewhere in the state.

Great names to look for include Caymus, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, Cakebread,  Chateau Montelena (whose Napa Chardonnay won the same Paris Tasting), and Far Niente. You don't have to spend a fortune to get a terrific California Cabernet, though. There are excellent examples of California Cabernet in every price range.