Display omitted •Adding caffeic and rosmarinic acids before the alcoholic fermentation of red wine.•The evolution of colors and polyphenolics was figured out by CIELAB and HPLC-MS.•The addition enhanced chromatic quality and copigmentation effect.•The addition can be applied as an alternative strategy for making premium red wines. Although phenolic copigments are rarely colored, they can still influence color expression in red wine copigmentation. Here, prefermentative agents, such as caffeic and rosmarinic acids, were added as copigments during Cabernet Sauvignon red winemaking. The evolution of colors and polyphenols was analyzed by tristimulus colorimetry and high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry during brewing and aging periods. The results showed that the addition of caffeic and rosmarinic copigments was beneficial to obtain more saturated and vivid hue of wines. The changes in color were correlated with a significant increase in anthocyanins concentration. Moreover, the results demonstrated that the addition of the two phenolic copigments increased the concentration of total phenols and enhanced the copigmentation effect, indicating improved chromatic intensity and color stability of wines. Therefore, the addition of caffeic and rosmarinic acids is a simple and useful enological technique to obtain red wines with high color quality and aging potential.