The 30 Best Cabernet Sauvignons for 2026

Born in Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon became a household name in the United States after arriving in California, gaining significant traction by the 1930s. However, it was the 1970s that truly changed everything. During that era, winemakers famously put California Cabernet up against the best of France, proving to skeptics just how world-class American wine had become. The critics were stunned, and the variety has reigned supreme ever since.

Today, Cabernet Sauvignon remains one of the most popular varieties in the red grape category. While the market is crowded, the quality has never been higher. Through recent tastings, we’ve noticed some exciting new wines emerging across the world’s Cab regions, from Washington State and Northern California to the historic vineyards of Australia.

The profiles range from soft and juicy to structured and savory, and from inky and tannic to everything in between. It is an exciting time for this legendary grape. Here are the 30 best Cabernet Sauvignons to try in 2026.

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Within this scope, VinePair’s tasting and editorial staff samples thousands of bottles every year. This ensures we have a close eye on what’s new and exciting. Crucially, it also provides us with the context needed to distinguish the simply good from the truly great, whether from a quality or value-for-money perspective — or both.

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How We Taste

We believe in tasting all products as our readers typically would: with full knowledge of the producer and — importantly — price. Our tastings are therefore not conducted blind.

VinePair’s tasting panel evaluates every wine on its aromas, flavors, structure, balance, and quality. We also consider whether or not the wine showed typicity for its specific grape or region.

How We Compiled This List

To provide our readers with the most comprehensive and thoroughly tested list of the best Cabernet Sauvignons to buy, VinePair invited producers, distributors, and PR firms working on their behalf to send samples for consideration. These bottles were submitted free of charge — producers didn’t pay to submit, nor did VinePair pay for the products. All were requested with the clear understanding that submission does not guarantee inclusion in the final list.

For the Cabernet Sauvignon roundup, we assigned a score to each product on a 100-point scale based upon the quality and intensity of its aromas, flavors, texture, and finish. Then we reviewed all scores and compiled an editorially driven list that meets our criteria of best Cabernet Sauvignons to buy right now. Each wine was assessed on quality, price, and availability to compile the final list.

Best Value Cabernet Sauvignon

Marietta Cellars Old Vine Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

Sonoma-based Marietta Cellars crafts a range of high-end Cabernets that are all worth seeking out, but what grabbed our attention this year was the winery’s more approachable, entry-level Cab bottling. Here, winemaker Scot Bilbro showcases a delicious, concentrated Cabernet for just around $20 — a true feat for a classic Cali Cab. It opens with delicate notes of blackberry jam and plums. The palate is its success, with soft, deep fruit and a very present (but not imposing) tannic edge. This wine is round and juicy while still maintaining that Cab Sauv vibe — all for a great price.

Average Price: $20
Rating: 94

Best Splurge Cabernet Sauvignon

Hamel Nuns Canyon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Forming part of the eastern border of Sonoma County, tucked into the Moon Mountain District almost 1,600 feet above sea level, is the Nuns Canyon Vineyard. This is not a well-known AVA among Sonoma’s more famous names like Russian River Valley, but something has emerged from these heights, and this bottle from Hamel shows why it deserves your attention.

The Hamel family farms this vineyard and ages the wine in a panoply of vessels: maturing for 12 months in 33 percent new French and Austrian oak casks, 41 percent neutral oak casks, and 26 percent neutral oak barrels, followed by seven months in concrete tanks. The result is a meticulously made wine with great focus and power. It opens with notes of crushed blackberries and moss with a subtle aroma of cooking herbs and savory tamarind. The palate offers complex notes of fleshy fruit and cured meat with a great texture. The tannins are easy yet present, moving quietly toward the core of the wine and your palate.

Average Price: $160
Rating: 98

The Best of the Rest:

Best Cabernet Sauvignons Under $30

Charlotte Dalton Liberty Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

Coming from the town of Langhorne Creek in South Australia, this is one of the most approachable and affordable Cabernet Sauvignons we’ve come across. It’s easy-drinking yet complex and balanced, with notes of ripe raspberries, blackberry jam, cedar, and baking spices. The inviting palate delivers a core of juicy fruit framed by a friendly tannic structure. A standout Cabernet for under $25.

Average Price: $23
Rating: 94

Cape Mentelle Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

Australia is a Cabernet Sauvignon powerhouse, but not in the Napa way. The wines tend to be jammier and have more savory notes. This bottle from Margaret River on the country’s West Coast is a great example, with notes of roasted tomatoes, ripe berries, and black plum. It lands full-bodied on the palate, with plush fruit and great acidity.

Average Price: $25
Rating: 93

Best Cabernet Sauvignons Under $50

Kiona Vineyards Estate Bottled Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Kiona was the first winery to plant vines in Washington’s Red Mountain District, and Cabernet Sauvignon was one of the first grapes to be planted in the soil. This estate bottling carefully blends wines from all five of Kiona’s Cab growing sites. It’s savory and rich with soft yet prominent tannins and vibrant berry fruit. The wine evolves in the glass over time, with ripe plum, cedar, and spice emerging as you sip.

Average Price: $36
Rating: 93

Las Jaras Steak House Cab 2022

This Cabernet takes us back in time to the smoke-filled American steakhouses of yore. You know the ones: fully carpeted, usually named after the owner, and absolutely brimming with old-school charm. This bottling from Las Jaras is meant to play on the nostalgia of a classic steakhouse Cab. It’s made with 87 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, sourced from the organically farmed Vinegrove Vineyard in Sonoma’s Dry Creek Valley, blended with Zinfandel from Mendocino to add some fruit and keep the wine approachable. The palate is deep with rich notes of black cherries, blackberries, freshly cracked black peppercorns, and soil. The palate is beautifully balanced with bright acidity and soft tannins.

Average Price: $36
Rating: 94

Wölffer Estate Vineyard Cassango Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

The 2022 vintage was a particularly favorable one on the shores of Long Island, the sunny summer ideal for grapes like Cab that can sometimes struggle to ripen in the region. And this bottling from Wölffer Estate is a great example of what the harvest had to offer. It opens with concentrated notes of blueberries, cassis, vanilla, pepper, and spice. And at 13.5 percent ABV, it’s wonderfully balanced. It’s a powerfully elegant wine.

Average Price: $40
Rating: 95

Outward Potrero Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2024

This is a California Cab for fans of lighter-bodied reds. Located on the Central Coast, Outward is known for its deft touch with typically fuller-bodied varieties like Syrah and Cabernet, skillfully coaxing out the elegant, cool-climate expression from each. This bottling comes from the Potrero Vineyard in San Luis Obispo’s Arroyo Grande Valley AVA. The dry-farmed site was planted in the ’90s and sits at a high elevation. The resulting wine has a stunning depth of flavor — boasting notes of rhubarb, wild berries, mocha, and tobacco leaf — but wrapped in an impressively light body, coming in at just 13 percent ABV.

Average Price: $42
Rating: 93

Pollak Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

It’s not easy to achieve depth in an East Coast Cabernet Sauvignon, but Pollak Vineyards has a way with its vines and these grapes. And with this bottle, they show how it’s done. The grapes come from the winery’s estate high in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, and the wine is aged in French oak barrels (30 percent new) for 12 months. It opens with wild berries, fresh soil, and vanilla on the nose. The palate is meaty with rich notes of blackberries, cassis, black cherry, and dried herbs.

Average Price: $45
Rating: 94

Best Cabernet Sauvignons Under $100

Long Meadow Ranch Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

This Napa Valley Cabernet combines two different terroirs into one impeccably balanced wine. Grapes are sourced from Long Meadow Ranch’s Mountain Estate, located high up in the Mayacamas Mountains, as well as the winery’s Rutherford Estate, which sits on a mineral-rich benchland in the valley. The resulting wine brings both fruit depth and structure together, with notes of anise, coffee beans, blueberries, and pepper.

Average Price: $60
Rating: 96

King Estate Winery Quintessence Cabernet Sauvignon 2019

We are witnessing a new, exciting style tucked away in Washington’s Columbia Valley. The Red Mountain AVA is emerging as a region with a unique expression of Cabernet Sauvignon and this bottle from King Estate is a great example. It brings a powerful, rustic elegance that leans into the savory side of the variety, with a lively nose of blackberries, soil, aged balsamic, and a dollop of oak.

Average Price: $70
Rating: 96

ALH Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

ALH is a new project from world-renowned winemaker Paul Hobbs and his daughter Agustina Hobbs, who represents the next generation of the winemaking family. The first release from this new collaborative project is a Cabernet from Napa’s cooler-climate Coombsville AVA. The wine is powerful but has a wonderful restraint. The nose is shy at first with hints of black tea, herbs, and soft berries, but over time it blooms with notes of cacao, herbs, red plum, and juicy cherries. The palate is rich yet elegant. Tannic yet soft. It begs for more years in the bottle but also asks to be sipped now.

Average Price: $75
Rating: 95

Cakebread Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

In a region like Napa Valley that often prioritizes power and structure, Cakebread brings a more approachable, welcoming flavor profile to Cab. The palate is all about texture: plush, full fruit with well-integrated tannins that seamlessly fit into the wine. It’s a juicy, easy-drinking, and reliably crowd-pleasing Cabernet.

Average Price: $75
Rating: 95

Freemark Abbey Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

This wine is like a geography project in a bottle, with grapes sourced from different elevations, exposures, and soil compositions across Napa Valley. The result is an epically powerful and age-worthy wine. It balances rich notes of cocoa powder and espresso with fruit-forward notes of black cherry, plum, and blackberry jam. The palate also features prominent notes of vanilla and baking spices, from 19 months of aging in French oak (47 percent new).

Average Price: $75
Rating: 95

Frog’s Leap Winery Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Frog’s Leap is a legacy winery in Napa’s Rutherford AVA. New York-born John Williams made his way to Napa in the late ’70s just in time to work with the likes of Warren Winiarski and Robert Mondavi. He carved out his own space and, in the mid-’90s, bought a plot with an old red barn and called it home. This wine might be one of the purest expressions of Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s not polished around the edges; it has a rustic elegance and power. The nose opens with crushed wild berries, anise, and soil-covered mushrooms. The mouthfeel is elegant and rich, with a seamless balance among fruit, tannins, and acidity. It’s a harmonious wine that, once on the palate, you don’t want to end; fortunately, you have a whole bottle to enjoy.

Average Price: $75
Rating: 97

Marine Layer Moon Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Marine Layer sources the grapes for this distinct Cab from the Sylvia Drive Vineyard in Sonoma’s Moon Mountain District. The densely packed rows are planted on soils layered with volcanic rock and basalt, leading to a great depth of flavor while retaining acidity. And the best part is you can sense all of this in the wine: Concentrated notes of blackberries, raspberries, fennel, and roasted herbs pop on the nose. The palate has a soft, liqueur-like texture with hints of vanilla and clove and a supportive tannic frame.

Average Price: $75
Rating: 96

Pursued by Bear Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

We have watched this wine evolve year after year, and this vintage might be one of the best yet. It brings together grapes sourced from distinct sites across Washington’s Columbia Valley and is aged in 100 percent Taransaud French oak for 30 months. The result is a bold, powerful wine. It opens with aromas of roasted coffee beans, black cherries, and vanilla. The mouthfeel is rich with concentrated fruit and seamless tannins, weaving together to add depth.

Average Price: $75
Rating: 95

Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars ARTEMIS Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Stag’s Leap is an icon of Napa Valley for a reason. This Cab, made with grapes sourced from the winery’s estate as well as select sites from across Napa, showcases incredible complexity. The nose is mineral, with briny notes of Kalamata olives alongside dried herbs and wild berries. The full-bodied palate is plush and ripe with notes of plums, fig jam, vanilla, tobacco, and spice.

Average Price: $75
Rating: 95

Duckhorn Vineyards Oakville Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

The Duckhorn family was part of the fabric that wove Napa Valley into existence. They came onto the scene in 1976, showcasing Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Now, 50 years later, its wine still commands attention. This Oakville expression brings bright blueberry and raspberry notes with the slightest hint of oak. The palate is full-bodied at 14.5 percent ABV, with firm tannins. If you pop this powerful bottle now, we suggest letting it open up in a decanter; otherwise it can benefit from some more time in the bottle.

Average Price: $80
Rating: 97

Sullivan Rutherford Estate Coeur de Vigne 2022

We continue to enjoy the blends coming from the Sullivan estate vintage after vintage. The blend for the Coeur de Vigne bottling shifts with each harvest, and the 2022 vintage saw a return to a Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant style, making up 80 percent of the blend. The wine is deep with concentrated black and red fruit notes complemented by savory accents of earth, herbs, and saline. At 14.8 percent ABV it’s a full-bodied wine with ample tannins, so give it some time to open up before enjoying.

Average Price: $80
Rating: 97

Clif Family Winery & Farm Kit’s Killer Cab 2023

This Napa Cab’s complexity is not in its aroma profile, but rather in the texture. The palate delivers firm tannins, bright acidity, and rich fruit in a nice harmonious bundle; everything is in its right place. The nose is subtle, but once it opens, it’s all ripe blackberries with hints of soil and spice. The mouthfeel is comfy and big — coming in at 14.9 percent ABV — with excellent acid that keeps the wine in check. Big and balanced.

Average Price: $85
Rating: 95

Smith Story Wine Cellars Pickberry Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

Smith Story works with unique vineyard sites across Sonoma to craft elegant, site-driven wines. One of its favorite plots to work with might just be the Pickberry Vineyard in the Sonoma Mountain AVA, but the fickle vineyard doesn’t deliver every vintage. The last time they produced a Cabernet from this plot was 2019, so this bottle represents its much anticipated next act. And it’s spectacular. The wine is soulful and deep, with concentrated notes of ripe raspberries and blackberries, coffee beans, and pepper. The dense fruit is lifted by a refreshing acidity. The wine lingers not only on the palate but in your mind. It’s ready now. It will also age well — but I’m not sure if you’ll have the patience.

Average Price: $96
Rating: 96

Hesperian Witha Cabernet Sauvignon 2019

This wine is masterfully made. It has power with a dose of humility. It’s as if it were built piece by piece, carefully. It opens with notes of blueberries, cassis, cocoa powder, and earth. The mouthfeel is juicy and full with a channel of acidity running through to quench your thirst. It’s well balanced at 13.9 percent ABV. The finish is elegant and lingers forever.

Average Price: $97
Rating: 98

Best Cabernet Sauvignons Over $100

Bricoleur Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

This Cali Cab comes from Sonoma’s Kick Ranch Vineyard, a hillside site with red volcanic soils. It offers a meaty, earth-rich nose of peppery blackberry jam and soil. The palate is soft and fleshy with incredible depth and balance between fruit and acidity.

Average Price: $100
Rating: 97

Far Mountain Montecillo Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

To Far Mountain’s founders Mai Errazuriz and Rodrigo Soto, the Montecillo Vineyard, overlooking the valley of the Moon Mountain District, is a “Grand Cru” location. We absolutely agree — this wine stuns with deep notes of blackberries, blueberries, cured tobacco leaf, and clove. The mouthfeel is medium-bodied and filled with a deep core of fruit, lifted to airy heights by the wonderful natural acidity. This wine may be young, but it’s thriving right now. We can only imagine what it will be like in a few years.

Average Price: $100
Rating: 98

Robert Mondavi Winery Commemorative Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

The Mondavi family needs no introduction. It has single-handedly brought California wine to the masses. This is a commemorative wine blended from two historic vineyard sites in Napa, the famed To Kalon Vineyard and the Wappo Hill Vineyard. The nose offers ripe berry fruit with hints of worn leather and cedar. The palate is seamless, with tannin and fruit merging in harmony, the medium acidity holding everything in place. It is a beautiful and balanced wine.

Average Price: $125
Rating: 95

Mt. Brave Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Mount Veeder fruit fills this bottle with the sun in which the vines soaked, the elevation in which the vines cooled, the wood in which it was raised, and it is absolutely delicious. The mountain fruit leads to an elegant yet powerful expression of Cabernet, filled with blueberries, green pepper, and a hint of earthy buckwheat. The deep mouthfeel is framed by grippy tannins and bright natural acidity.

Average Price: $135
Rating: 96

Davis Estates Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

Davis Estates feels like the perfect blend of tradition and innovation. In 2011, the Davis family bought a centenarian property in Napa and turned it into a winery, blending old-school with new-school. The winery’s Rutherford Cab opens with blackberries, black cherry, mocha, and spice. The mouthfeel is wonderful, with a taut edge of grippy tannins and deep, focused fruit.

Average Price: $155
Rating: 95

Corison Sunbasket Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

The Sunbasket Vineyard was planted in the 1950s by none other than André Tchelistcheff, a pioneering winemaker and consultant in a nascent Napa Valley. He named it because of the sun exposure in that particular corner of St. Helena. Owner and winemaker Cathy Corison sourced from this vineyard for over two decades until finally purchasing it in 2015. The site is known for producing expressive and finessed Cabernets, and this bottle is no exception. Crushed blueberries, juicy black raspberries, dried herbs, and cured meat emerge on the nose. The palate is impeccably balanced; the tannins are present and accounted for, but do not break apart the soft, meaty fruit.

Average Price: $260
Rating: 94

Larkmead Vineyards The Lark 2023

The Lark is a nod to this legendary estate’s history, made from a selection of the best barrels in a given harvest. This is a more restrained expression of Napa Cab, with savory aromas of earth and green peppers. The palate delivers a deep core of fruit with soft tannins around the edges. The balance is amazing, and it’s just getting started.

Average Price: $300
Rating: 97

FAQs

Where does Cabernet Sauvignon come from?

Cabernet Sauvignon originated in Bordeaux, France, where it is widely used in the prestigious blends of the Left Bank. DNA testing has shown that Cabernet Sauvignon is actually the product of a crossing between two other grapes that are popular in Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc — hence the name Cabernet Sauvignon.

Which region makes the best Cabernet Sauvignon?

While Cabernet Sauvignon comes from France, where it is commonly used as a blending grape, most major wine regions have taken up this grape and made it their own. High-quality examples of Cabernet Sauvignon, both as varietal wines and in blends, can now be found across the globe from esteemed regions like Napa Valley to Washington State, Australia, Chile, and South Africa. It is one of the world’s most common and popular varieties, also making it one of the most planted.

Why is Cabernet Sauvignon so popular?

Cabernet Sauvignon put Napa Valley, and the U.S. wine industry, on the map, and drinkers embraced it. The wine’s profile is bold, fruit-forward, and complex, making it a great choice for drinking on its own or with food. The familiar flavors of blackberry, plum, blackcurrant, and vanilla make it an inviting wine that many enjoy, especially with a nice steak.