Great and joyous news: This article and the next will be presenting two wine-nations that bring mucho bang-for-the-buck AKA really good wines for a song. So, without further ado, off we go to our first value-play destination.
Read Lou’s columns on the wines of Rioja and Sicily
Sometimes one must travel far and wide to find the place where they can reach their highest potential. For the Malbec wine-grape the trip was a doozy from Bordeaux France to South America but has been well worth it. In Argentina, particularly the Mendoza region, Malbec was met with open arms. There the altitude, climate and geology are just right for this grape to find its highest wine expression.
In Argentina, the altitude, climate and geology are just right for Malbecs to find its highest wine expression.
At this latitude, summer days are some of longest in any wine region and along with warm days and cool nights created by cold air rushing down from the mountains these conditions bring unique ripening conditions perfect for this dark thick-skinned variety. In addition, there is a generous water supply from cool waters running down from the snow-peaked Andes Mountains that allow winemakers to give vines a sip whenever needed.
The resulting wines are deep and rich with polished tannins and a range of spice characteristics from pepper to cookie-spice. These blend with flavors of dark plums and berries and cocoa. Economy models tend to be a bit simple and fruit forward and are meant to be enjoyed in their youth. Premium versions see substantial oak and have more complexity of flavor and tannic structure that make them wonderful agers.
Another red that does its best work in Argentina is Bonarda. These are some of the best values in the wine world today. This is another dark, handsome and spicy wine that is a little lighter in body, making them wonderful partners for barbecue on a warm day. Bonardas are a little harder to find but well worth the search and even sub $15 bottles bring juicy wine joy.
Argentina’s signature white wine is Torrontes. Best when grown in cooler climates, these wines have a quite unique profile of tree fruits, sweet herbs and white pepper, freshening acids and a pleasant earthiness unlike any other wine I know. A salad of fresh herbs and spicy greens are a wonderful match.
And now for the extreme bargain recommendations. The Tasting Crew rarely ventures below $10 but we recently tried some bargain-basement Malbecs and Torrontes that really delivered. We went with something old and something new. The latter being Trivento and the old-friend being Alamo.
The punchline is that for less than $40 you can grab all four bottles, prepare some spring salads and grilled beast, let them Tango in your mouth and have an authentically wonderful Argentinean pairing experience. You are welcome, and more to come in our next edition.
