vegetal taste in new cabernet?

[wdonovan]

What causes a vegetal taste in a young cab? I would describe the taste as green olives, very in-your-face, no getting around this one. Is this something that pops up one bottle at a time or does this attribute come from the entire vintage? In other words, should I try another bottle or two before passing on this vintage as a whole or is this because of weather or bad winemaking practices?

[Innkeeper]

You didn't say which Cab it is. The veggie taste is usually the result of growing in rich soil or over fertilized soil. If it was an inexpensive Cab with California Appellation, the grapes could be from the Central Valley, and these frequently give the veggie taste.

[Bucko]

Underripe grapes can also give a veggie taste. which is why canopy management is so important in cooler areas.

[wdonovan]

I didn't say which cab 'cause I didn't think it mattered. I just wanted to find what causes it and if it's a single bottle phenomenon or vintage-wide. It is a low end Chilean Colchua (sp?) Valley '04 Los Vascos, owned or partnered by the Lafite Rothschilds. I think they've done exceptionally well with this vineyard in the last 5 years. I thought by this vintage, they'd have a wine so consistant it would only be hurt by vintages that suffered terrible weather conditions. It sounds from your answers that this is not going to be better in another bottle. Is this type of character something that would typically mellow / disipate in time? This vintage has just recently started shipping. I'm trying to assess whether I should spend a full day scouring all my local haunts for what's left of the '03 vintage. It is one of our house wines that we buy by the case.

[Innkeeper]

Veggie tastes in Chilian reds is very common. Many actually promote the "green peppers" in them. Since I lothe the raw green pepper taste, I shy away from them, with few exceptions.

[winoweenie]

When the cab grapes get less than optimum sun they tend to have this lovely( [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/wink.gif[/img]) vegatal note Most of the early Cabs from Monterrey had this feature until the cause was disclosed. WW

[Drew]

If you hadn't told us the name I was gonna guess South America.

Drew