Cabernet Dorsa is a dark-skinned variety of

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...

used for red

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

. It was created at a grape breeding institute in Weinsberg in the Württemberg wine region of Germany in 1971 by crossing the

Blaufränkisch Blaufränkisch (German for ''blue Frankish'') is a dark-skinned variety of grape used for red wine. and California, DNA profiling has shown that Blaufränkisch is a cross between Gouais blanc (Weißer Heunisch; male parent) and Blaue Zimmettr ...

and

Dornfelder Dornfelder is a dark-skinned variety of grape of German origin used for red wine.

varieties. The original information from the breeders Helmut Schleip and Bernd HE Hill, that it was a cross between Dornfelder and

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebanon' ...

, has since been refuted by DNA analysis, according to Foundation Plant Services at the University of California at Davis. Cabernet Dorsa received varietal protection and was released for general cultivation in 2003. The vines of Cabernet Dorsa show good winter hardiness and the grapes reach higher must weights than Dornfelder or

Spätburgunder Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French words for ''pine'' and ''black.'' The word ''pine ...

under typical German growing conditions. In 2006, there were of Cabernet Dorsa in Germany, with an increasing trend.German Wine Institute: German Wine Statistics 2007-2008
In 2000, before the variety's general release, there existed only of experimental plantations. Cabernet Dorsa wines are deep in colour, rich in

tannin Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids. The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'', ...

, have noticeable aromas of

cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...

and

bell peppers The bell pepper (also known as paprika, sweet pepper, pepper, or capsicum ) is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in different colors, including red, yellow, orange ...

and are considered well suited for oak barrel aging. It is known under the synonyms (breeding codes) We 71-817-92 with We denoting Weinsberg. The German language version of Wikipedia offers a more complete description.

References

{{Reflist Red wine grape varieties