Why wines made from the same grape by the same brand can sometimes cost more
A quick primer on the cuvée system
Wente “Wetmore” Cabernet Sauvignon, Livermore Valley, California
$20.99
PLCB Item #1477
Sale price through Aug. 5; regularly $26.99
Shoppers tend to think of wines in terms of brand and grape, but a visit to any winery will reveal another layer of wine-label complexity: At most tasting rooms, you’ll encounter multiple wines made from the same grape, each with their own unique name and often at different price points. In the wine world, these are known as the winery’s different “cuvées” of that particular grape. The word derives from the French term cuve, meaning fermentation vat, but the way in which cuvée is used in English is more easily understood as a fancy word for a separate batch of wine.
A winery’s cuvées are typically organized in a hierarchy of quality tiers, where the higher priced wines are made in smaller volumes with more ambition. As an example, California’s Wente Vineyards produces four different cabernet sauvignon wines. The two most affordable are both stocked in most Philadelphia area stores — one Central Coast cuvée called “Southern Hills” that is priced just below $20, and this superior cuvée from its Livermore Valley estate vineyards for a few dollars more, known as the “Wetmore” cabernet sauvignon, after one of its founders. Both are well-made wines that are temptingly discounted this month. If you were to taste both side by side, it would illustrate what you get when you spend even a little more to get a better bottle. The difference would be quite clear: Where the entry level Southern Hills wine is lighter and brighter, full of fresh, wild berry flavors, the Wetmore cuvée is darker, denser, and far more concentrated.
What you’re getting by spending $6 more is better quality fruit sourced from more mature vines and additional craftsmanship in its refinement at the winery. The Wetmore grapes are harvested at a higher degree of ripeness, tilting its flavor profile more toward black cherries and blackberry jam in a way that is further amplified by the use of a high proportion of new French oak barrels for a longer maturation period. These expensive barrels add a touch of coffee or chocolate-like complexity that helps the wine to resonate longer on the palate after each sip — and contribute to this cuvée’s higher cost of production and therefore to its higher shelf price too.
Also available at:
Canal’s in Mt. Ephraim, $20.99
Total Wine & More in Claymont,$22.99
WineWorks in Marlton, $24.98