Cabernet Sauvignon (ka-behr-NAY sohvee- NYAWN) is the world's most acclaimed red wine grape. Many people affectionately refer to it as "Cab". This tiny black grape was imported to California in the 1880s from the famed Bordeaux region of France. Its popularity was due to its late budding, an advantage in areas prone to spring frosts like Bordeaux and Napa Valley. More than any other grape varietal, it has put California on the international wine map.

California vintners initially appreciated the grape for its crispness and intensity of color as well as its rich complexity of aromas and flavors. Eventually, it became the preferred red wine grape in California. The best growing areas for this grape include the cooler, northern counties of Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino, as well as cool sites along the coastal zones of Santa Cruz, Santa Clara and Santa Barbara counties.

Almost every winery seems to offer a Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet blend in its line and some also produce a rosè or a blanc de noir from this noble grape. As far as food pairings, lamb dishes are the classic match for Cabernet Sauvignon. Depending upon the fullness of the wine, most beef dishes, stews, game and Mediterranean foods will also pair nicely. Serve at cool room or cellar temperature.

Napa Valley is America's most famous wine region and rightly so. Each year hundreds of thousands of wine enthusiasts eagerly trek through its vineyards and wine cellars to discover new tasting pleasures. By any standard its wines are world class. Napa's most recognized wine grape is Cabernet Sauvignon, which was imported from France's Bordeaux region by the pioneers who settled the valley.

History - The first recorded Napa wines were made in 1844 by George C. Yount (Yountville). Charles Krug established the first commercial winery in 1861. Other winery properties soon followed: Schramsberg in 1862, Beringer in 1876, Inglenook (now Niebaum-Coppola) in 1879 and Beaulieu in 1900. Each of these historic wineries remains in business today! By 1880 the wine production of the 140+ wineries listed in the county surpassed a million cases a year with 18,000 acres of vineyards. But phylloxera (the devastating plant louse) had begun its swoop through the valley and soon reduced this to 3,000 acres of vines.

Prohibition followed in 1920 and prompted growers to graft over their classic European varieties to lesser quality, hardy, thick-skinned grapes that could stand the rigors of rail travel to the Eastern states for use by home winemakers. During Prohibition, most of the wineries went out of business, though a few survived by producing sacramental and medicinal wines.

Repeal - Repeal came in 1933 with little demand for the low quality grapes and wines. In the 1960s, following decades of improvement in quality, interest began to revive for Napa wines. A mere handful of wineries and less than 10,000 acres of vines seemed to blossom "overnight" into today's 200 wineries and 50,000 acres of vines.

Wine Appellations - From roughly south to north, there are thirteen appellations in Napa County - Napa Valley, Carneros, Wild Horse Valley, Stags Leap, Atlas Peak, Rutherford, Oakville, Oak Knoll, Mount Veeder, Spring Mountain, St. Helena, Howell Mountain, Chiles Valley and Diamond Mountain. The coolest regions are closest to San Pablo Bay in the south, while the warmer regions are in the northern parts of the valley. Some recent wine club offerings of Napa wineries have included: Beaulieu Vineyards, Burgess Cellars, Chappellet, Clos Pegase, Conn Creek, Freemark Abbey, Joseph Phelps Winery, Rumpus, Sequoia Grove, Sterling Vineyards, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars and Louis Martini.

Try a visit to Napa's new COPIA Wine & Food Center or a fun outing through Napa on the Napa Valley wine train. Why not set up a visit to the Culinary Institute at Napa's historic Greystone, together with an exclusive cooking demonstration. Some of the wineries you might visit are Schramsberg and Niebaum- Coppola in Napa and Buena Vista in Sonoma's Carneros region. A great end to a visit is a hot air balloon ride over scenic Napa Valley Wine Country. If you have any questions or need help in planning your trip please email us at info@wineinsiders.com.

Infusing herbs in wine in a covered jar adds a great variety of seasoning potential to a cook's repertoire. With this salad, add hot canellini bean soup, a favorite main dish pasta and a fruit tart for dessert to complete a splendid Italian-style menu.

• 1/2 cup Basil-Chive Cabernet Sauvignon (recipe below)
• 3 Tb sp olive oil, or more to taste
• 2 medium cloves garlic, mashed
• 8 medium Italian plum tomatoes, quartered lengthwise
• 1 small sweet (red or Spanish) onion, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 pound day-old crusty Italian bread loaf, cut into bite-size cubes
• Salt and freshly

• 4 sprigs fresh basil leaves
• 1/3 cup snipped chives
• 2 sprigs fresh Italian parsley
• 1 1/2 cups Cabernet Sauvignon

Make the herbed wine: Put herbs in a pint jar. Pour wine over herbs and cover the jar. Store in a cool, dry, dark place for a minimum of 10 days. Taste for flavor strength. Wine may be kept longer. Makes 1-1/2 cups. Recipe may be doubled.

Make the salad: Blend herbed wine, oil and garlic in a 1-cup glass measuring cup. In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes and onions, add wine dressing while stirring. Just before serving, toss in bread cubes. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with basil leaves.

Serves 6-8 people

Red wines do develop layers of flavors with skin contact during fermentation, but most important, without their skins there would be little or no color. All the wine grape's color pigmenting is found in its skin. There is another important element of wine that comes from this skin contact, tannin.

Tannin is basically flavorless and therefore is felt in the mouth as a texture of the wine. It is the slight bitterness in the wine's flavors that you notice in the back of your mouth. This tannin works wonders with foods such as lamb and duck, where it cuts through the fat of the meat.

Red wines show their marvelous complexity when it comes to food. It is possible to find reds that will pair well with most any food from cheeses to seafood to poultry to game to fresh fruits. Fullbodied reds (Cabernet, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Merlot) are great with steaks, chops, lamb, BBQ - even grilled salmon and tuna will easily fit into their profile. Medium-bodied styles (Barbera, Sangiovese, Tempranillo) work fine with many poultry dishes, such as squab, turkey and roast chicken. There aren't too many light style reds, most are made as blends or dry rosé wines. These are perfect for warm weather sipping and make great matches for dishes that include fruit, such as grilled pork with apples, or grilled shrimp kabobs with bell peppers and pineapple.

Bon appetit!