Herbaceousness?

[Thomas]

Herbal qualities come from the soil or the other plants that grow nearby, but if by CS you mean Cabernet Sauvignon, herbal often points to under-ripe grapes, or at least grapes from cool growing regions where ripeness hardly reaches the intensity as in warmer climates. To "control" herbal because of under-ripe grapes, work has to be done in the vineyard (proper sun exposure, proper cropping, et al). If control is attempted during the winemaking process the results can raise many, many problems.

Of course, not all vineyards and not all winemakers are alike, so the subject of herbal as it relates to ripeness should always be specific to a particular vineyard site and a particular wine.

[This message has been edited by foodie (edited 04-03-2003).]