What to cook with Cabernet Sauvignon? Pauillac, Napa and a feast for meat lovers.

Bordeaux or Napa: two faces of Cabernet

Andreas stays loyal to Bordeaux. He brings Pauillac from Château Latour, the third wine of the famous First Growth estate, from the 2017 vintage, with a little more Merlot for softer, earlier drinking. Fredrik answers with a Napa Valley Cabernet from the same vintage, the region he fell in love with on his first visit.

Fredrik sums up the difference neatly. Bordeaux has a cooler, rainier climate and gives more refined, structured wines. California’s sunshine gives richer, fruitier and more opulent Cabernet. Both are made for meat, and both hosts agree that wines of this pedigree show best after seven or eight years.

Pauillac with braised lamb shank and truffle

Andreas notes that Bordeaux itself eats a lot of duck, beef and lamb. He braises lamb shanks for hours in Cabernet Sauvignon with seared vegetables, fresh garlic, tomato concentrate, sage, mint and a cautious half branch of rosemary. He then blends the vegetables and black olives into a kind of red wine tapenade gravy, because olives echo flavors he finds in Cabernet. On the side: a buttery potato purée with generous black truffle. The olives, mint and sage mirror savory, herbal notes in the wine, and the meat is braised until it falls off the bone.

His pairing tips are practical. Use concentrated tomato rather than fresh to avoid too much acidity, keep strong herbs like rosemary in check, and cook with the same style of wine you will drink. Above all, with a great wine, keep the flavors honest and let the bottle shine.

Napa Cabernet with a steak toast

Fredrik’s dish is a mini version of a Swedish classic he calls a Bookmaker toast, related to the British shooter’s sandwich. Rounds of bread fried golden in butter are topped with Dijonnaise, arugula and thin slices of ribeye grilled pink, then finished with horseradish and a raw quail egg yolk. Grilled, slightly charred beef is a natural partner for ripe, fruit-forward Napa Cabernet with plenty of tannin to cut through the fat. The thin steaks need only a minute or so per side, then about ten minutes of rest so the juices stay inside when sliced.

He seasons generously with salt and pepper before grilling for a little extra grilled flavor, and warns that horseradish needs a light hand so it does not overpower the wine. Both hosts also name some go-to comfort dishes for Cabernet blends, from oxtail ragout to a good burger with truffle mayonnaise.

A Super Tuscan with Parmesan and balsamic

The bonus wine is a Super Tuscan, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Fredrik explains the story: in the 1960s and 1970s, rebel winemakers in Tuscany began using grapes like Cabernet instead of Sangiovese, sold the wines as simple table wine, and saw them become some of Italy’s most famous bottles. The pairing is a Tuscan tradition: aged Parmesan with aged balsamic vinegar, which picks up the wine’s dried cherry notes.

The hosts also debate the trend of Bordeaux bashing and the role of the négociants. Andreas argues that compared with top Napa or Burgundy, good Bordeaux is not expensive at all. He also credits the négociants with saving many growers in the past by buying whole harvests regardless of quality.

Truffled lamb or steak on toast?

Andreas works hard while Fredrik relaxes with a glass of the Pauillac, and there is yet another AI poster to judge. Watch to see whether Andreas’ truffled lamb overpowers Fredrik’s steak on toast, and who takes the Cabernet Sauvignon crown.