Cabernet Mitos is a dark-skinned variety of

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry (botany), berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non-Climacteric (botany), climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of ...

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 ...

. It was created at a grape breeding institute in

Weinsberg Weinsberg ( South Franconian: ''Weischberg'') is a town in the north of the state of Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It was founded around 1200 and is situated in the Heilbronn district. The town has about 11,800 inhabitants. It is noted for its wi ...

in the

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Wür ...

wine region,

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

in 1970 by crossing

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 Zimmett ...

and

Teinturier Teinturier grapes are grapes whose flesh and juice is red in colour due to anthocyanin pigments accumulating within the pulp of the grape berry itself. In most cases, anthocyanin pigments are confined to the outer skin tissue only, and the squee ...

du Cher. The previous belief that it was a cross between Blaufränkisch 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 Leban ...

, which even the breeders themselves stated, was corrected in 2013 through a DNA analysis. "Mitos" is the German word for

mitosis In cell biology, mitosis () is a part of the cell cycle in which replicated chromosomes are separated into two new nuclei. Cell division by mitosis gives rise to genetically identical cells in which the total number of chromosomes is maint ...

, a stage in the

cell cycle The cell cycle, or cell-division cycle, is the series of events that take place in a cell that cause it to divide into two daughter cells. These events include the duplication of its DNA ( DNA replication) and some of its organelles, and sub ...

. Cabernet Mitos received varietal protection and was released for general cultivation on January 24, 2001.Wein-Plus Glossar: Cabernet Mitos
accessed on March 6, 2013 The vines of Cabernet Mitos show good winter hardiness. In 2006, there were of Cabernet Mitos in Germany, with an increasing trend.German Wine Institute: German Wine Statistics 2007-2008
Cabernet Mitos wines are full bodied and 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 ...

, and are well suited for oak barrel aging. The wines show similarities in aromas to Cabernet Sauvignon.Vines.org: Cabernet Mitos
accessed on April 25, 2008

Synonyms

It is known under the synonyms (breeding codes) We 70-77-4 F and Weinsberg 70-77-4 F.Vitis International Variety Catalogue: Cabernet Mitos
, accessed on April 25, 2008

References

{{Reflist Red wine grape varieties