Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon
Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon / Mind & Body Low / 9%
Our wine experts think this Californian Cabernet Sauvignon wine would be a match made in heaven with these dishes. Bon appétit!
As I sample more varieties of NA and low-abv wine and beer, I have begun to wonder. Do so many of these companies focus much of their marketing strategy on health-consciousness because that was truly the inspiration for their inception? Or were they searching for a niche in the industry and found the obvious one that less alcohol means less calories? Whichever order the cause and effect came in, the fact of the matter is it has become very common for these brands to market themselves as a healthier alternative. Consumer who want to consume less calories an alcohol without ditching booze completely can find plenty of low-abv options out there.
One of these companies producing low-calorie wine is called Mind & Body. They have the benefit of being based out of the wine mecca that is Napa, California, and they currently have three varietals available for purchase. When you think of California wine, the first style that probably comes to mind is Cabernet Sauvignon. It is typically considered the gold standard, so it comes as no surprise that it is the only red that Mind & Body offers, but it is also a very high bar to live up to. I plan on letting you know if they meet that standard through this Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon review.
Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon Review
The label on this wine’s bottle is rather simple – a white frame around a gray background with the brand name printed in the top left corner and a line drawing of a flower taking up the rest of the space. The facts that is it low calorie is present right there on the front, and the nine percent abv is listed on the back. The back of the label also tells us that it is vegan, gluten-free, and contains zero added sugar. This Cab does contain 90 calories per five-ounce serving, which is lower than a traditional version but not drastically so.
Pouring this wine into a glass immediately gets me excited. It has that beautiful deep red color that you find in so many high-quality Cabernet varieties. It is dark and opaque, tapering to a brighter red around the edges of the surface.
Taking in the aroma is where, I believe, the low-calorie quality first comes into play. The scent is pleasant enough – dominated by dark black cherry – but it is noticeably toned back compared to what I expected from its appearance. In addition to the cherry notes, there are also some other berry hints lingering underneath, perhaps some raspberry. I sense a good bit of dry acidity on the nose as well, which is promising for my personal tastes at least. Despite the berry notes, there isn’t much sweetness to speak of at all.
I have to say that, in total, I am very satisfied by the appearance and aroma of this wine. I suppose when reducing alcohol content by just four percent you don’t necessarily lose all of the positive characteristics, but it also doesn’t guarantee a wine will be delicious. In order to answer the question, “Is Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon good?” we have to dig in and take the first sip.
Is Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon Good?
There are not a lot of surprises apparent on the tongue upon tasting. The most significant note present remains that deep black cherry. Unfortunately, even that element is toned down juuust a bit too much to be truly outstanding. Don’t get me wrong, it is pleasant enough, but there are times during the tasting process where my tongue was left searching for more.
Likewise, the dry acidity follows nose rather strictly. I would not say that it is wantingly dry on the far end of the scale, but there really is no sweetness to be found. Those berry notes that I found on the nose are hard to find on the tongue, but I do think they are there underneath everything. Instead, something that comes to my palette is a little bit of plum flavor. It is very nice, but again I just wish it were a little more gregarious.
As you may have guessed from everything that I have said so far, the body of this Cab is light, perhaps even more so than you are currently imagining. I wouldn’t say there is a watery quality because the texture is still that of a quality wine, so that’s a huge plus. Everything is just pulled back a little farther than I expected it to be considering the alcohol content and calorie count.
Likely because of the light nature of the body, the finish of this wine is fairly strong. It leaves your tongue with a memory but doesn’t linger longer than it’s welcome. I’ll also note that after re-corking at letting half of the bottle sit for two days, the biggest effect was that the acidity went up another couple notches and made it less palatable.
There is no doubt that this was an enjoyable tasting experience for me, but low-alcohol wine is a bit of a tricky thing to grade. I will have to weigh all of these elements with care before I arrive at a final Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon rating.
Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon Rating
As I sample and review both dealcoholized and low-abv wine, a lot of it comes down to expectations of the specific offering. If the abv and calorie totals were a little lower in this particular wine, then all of the positive characteristics would be lot more impressive. The fact that those totals remain rather high led me to believe that this Cab would have a lot more character to it. And while it was objectively tasty, it didn’t quite live up to the full body that you expect from a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon.
Ultimately, all of these things are nitpicks, though. If you simply poured this into a glass and told me it was a healthier version of red wine, I would be entirely satisfied with the experience. So I must keep things in perspective. Still, I can’t quite give it the highest grade possible, and that is why I’m wrapping up this Mind & Body Cabernet Sauvignon review by awarding it 4 out of 5 stars. You won’t be disappointed as long as you keep your expectations in check.
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