Snooth Argentina Tasting with Doña Paula

A while back, I got the chance to rejoin my friends from Snooth.com for an online tasting of wines from Doña Paula of Argentina. Founded in 1990, the winery offers a range of about a dozen wines.

2012 Doña Paula Estate Chardonnay
Valle de Uco
100% Chardonnay
$15, 14.1% abv.

The white wine has peach and floral notes, a round body, and brassy acidity. It would be great with roast duck, where the acidity would cut through the rich fat of the skin.

2011 Doña Paula Estate Torrontés
Valle de Cafayate
100% Torrontés
$15, 13.5% abv.

Tropical fruits, nice hint of pineapple, mineral base, medium acidity, stony. Dried fruit finish. Torrontés is an interesting grape and one that deserves a lot more attention. This one would be perfect with a nice crisp salad that included fresh fruits and walnuts along with bleu cheese.

2011 Doña Paula Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
Luján de Cuyo
100% Cabernet Sauvignon
$15, 14.1% abv.

Major notes of blackberry and blueberry, round dark fruit flavors, and a medium tannic finish. Definitely one to pair with savory roast pork loin.

2011 Doña Paula Estate Malbec
Valle de Uco
100% Malbec
$15, 14.1% abv.

Quite bright for a Malbec, with lots of tart red cherry aromas and flavors and a biting tannic structure. I would be anxious to try this one after another two or three years of aging to let it soften out a bit. For the moment, it would be a good choice for serving with a grilled burger topped with lots of onions, a dish that would fight back against the wine.

Note: These wines were provided as samples for review.

South American Trio

Here's a look behind the curtain here at BWR on how wines are ordered in one of my posts. For the photo, if there's not a logical order like vintage, I'll line them up however the light works best for the situation. Particularly beautiful rosés get the most focus in terms of sunlight coming through the bottle. When it comes to the listing of wines, I tend to start with lighter whites and end with heavy reds, which is how I tend to serve them during a dinner party. This often corresponds with a gradual increase in price, so that the less expensive wines are at the beginning. The most expensive isn't always the best or most memorable, but when that special bottle of aged Bordeaux or Burgundy is brought out at the end of a magnificent dinner, it makes a great closing, both in tasting and in writing.

In honor of the Southern Hemisphere, I'm turning this trio of reviews upside down. Two Chilean reds and an Argentine white. There is a connection between the three, with the reds representing the venerable Montes winery of Chile, and the newer Kaiken winery in Argentina run by Aurelio Montes, Jr.

2011 Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon
Colchagua Valley, Chile
90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot
$22, 13.5% abv.

This is the classic wine that launched Montes 25 years ago. It opens up with rich aromas of tobacco, coffee, blackberries, and a touch of pencil shavings. On the palate the flavors are mellow and well balanced with medium tannins and a smooth finish. A great bargain, and one that would be an elegant accompaniment to rare prime rib.

2012 Montes Twins Red Wine
Colchagua Valley, Chile
50% Malbec, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon
$13, 14% abv.

The more whimsical Montes bottle features label art by the great Ralph Steadman. That splatter style is so unmistakable and I smile every time I encounter it. The curious wine (Chilean Malbec?) is tart and tannic with dominant aromas of black cherry and leather. It needs a little breathing before settling down with a pizza or burger at the end of a long day at work.

2012 Kaiken Terroir Feries Torrontés
Salta, Argentina
100% Torrontés
$13, 13.5% abv.

If you ever encounter a Torrontés, it probably came from Argentina. If you got some in a blend from Chile or Spain while doing DNA analysis on your wine, it might even be a surprise to the winemaker. But I like these grapes that have found niches in various parts of the world, and this bottle does not disappoint. The nose has pleasant lime peel scents with a touch of grapefruit in the background. Low acidity with a smooth, mineral finish. There's a lot of complexity in this inexpensive bottle and it's worth bringing to a tasting party to share something that's not just citrus from start to finish like a few Sauvignon Blancs that are out there. Should be delightful with shellfish.

Note: These wines were provided as samples for review.

Santa Julia Wines

Santa Julia is a subset of the Argentine Zuccardi wine family, named after the young Julia Zuccardi. (Hey, more Italians in Argentine wine!) Everything is organic, done by hand, and cared for at every stage of the process. While they compost goat droppings and all of that, they do use a small amount of sulfites which means that the wines are not officially organic under U.S. law. This is a common problem that you run into not just with imports but also with some domestic produce: you can grow an organic product, but if you don't follow the precise letter of the law and get the proper certification, it's not Organic. It's a frustration that you'll hear often at the farmer's market.

I've seen some interesting things with wines from Argentina, but I really love it when winemakers focus on the particular grapes that seem to thrive there: Malbec, Torrontés, Bonarda, etc. Don't get me wrong, it's great when people experiment, but I've never had as much joy from an Argentine Cab Sav or Chardonnay as I have from the three or four grapes that truly flourish in the shade of the Andes.

2010 Santa Julia Malbec
Mendoza
$10, 13% abv.
Plum and a little nutty aspect on the nose. Roasted nut flavor continues on the palate with deep dark fruit flavors. Medium tannins, and a long finish. Solid middle of the week wine, and well recommended for something salty like a nice Reuben.

2010 Santa Julia Torrontés
Mendoza
$10, 13% abv.
I've seen a lot of Torrontés recently, and it's such a fun grape. This one has a nice peach and apricot aroma, but there's also this deeper dusty character combined with candied ginger that is amazing. While normally I'd pair a wine like this with shrimp or a salad, I really enjoyed this one all by its lonesome.

Note: These wines were received as samples.

Xavier Flouret Trio

Here's a few of the latest releases from Xavier Flouret, a company that sources wines from around the world and markets them under a unified brand. This isn't unusual, but I do like the fact that they include the information about the vineyard and the winemaker on the back label. If you like the general style of wines that they're selecting, the distinctive label makes it easy to find others on the shelf--though they'll probably be spread out due to the wide range of regions and grapes.

WIth these three I've now made my way through half of the portfolio, and look forward to trying more in the future.

2007 Xavier Flouret La Pilar Malbec
Finca la Celia
Uco Valley, Mendoza
$15, 13.5% abv.
Aromas of dark plum, leather, and deep black fruit. It has a round body with a full fruit flavor, but an overall good balance. There are firm tannins with a long finish, and I'd suggest letting this breathe for a bit before serving. As with many Malbecs in this range, it's going to work great with all sorts of meat dishes. I went for a hot roast beef sandwich, and late at night it was a homey and tasty dinner.

2009 Xavier Flouret Flaca Torrontés
Bodegas El Porvenir de los Andes
Valle de Cafayate
$18, 13.5% abv.
Flaca is a Spanish adjective meaning thin, but it's also a common nickname for a skinny woman. While I might personally be on the side of an hourglass figure with an extra ten minutes in all the right places, let's be generous and use the word lithe to describe this wine. It has a delicate perfume aroma with tropical fruits like papaya and mango, and the kind of flowers you only see in National Geographic. Those tropical fruits follow on the tongue, and there's just a small burst of acidity before a short finish disappears. It honestly makes me think of the Caribbean more than the mountains of South America. Really quite surprising, and I'd love to see this with some local shellfish roasted right on the beach.

2010 Xavlier Flouret Nationale 7
Domaine de Rimauresq - Cru Classé
Côtes de Provence
45% Grenache, 40% Cinsault, 15% Tibouren
$20, 13% abv.
I wrote extensively about this wine last year, and this new release is wonderful as well. Like last time, this one has a light nose of yellow cherries and violets, with flavors of wild strawberries and a tiny bit of acidity. I had it cold, cool, and at room temperature, and it's enjoyable at all three. I still maintain that it's really the most beautiful rosé I've ever had in my possession, and it seems a shame to actually consume it. But when you do, do something a little salty and savory. I made a white clam pizza last time, but I think it would be wonderful with raw oysters.


Note: These wines were received as samples.

Argento Wines

Last year I tried a Malbec from Argento Wine, but that was just one out of over two dozen bottles produced by the company. I got an opportunity to try five more recently, three of them representing grape varieties that are traditionally successful in Argentina.

2010 Argento Cool Climate Pinot Grigio
Mendoza
$13, 13% abv.
Slight musky nose and a bit of a dark honey flavor. Bone dry with a little crisp finish, and overall a deeper, darker form of Pinot Grigio. What does "cool climate" mean? It's not a strictly defined term, but they also have a regular Pinot Grigio. In this case, it refers to the high altitude valleys of Rivadavia and Uco in the foothills of the Andes. In other parts of the world you can have cool climate vineyards either through proximity to the poles (Canada, England) or cool ocean currents (Chile) or both (Tasmania). While most Pinot Grigios call for fairly weak food pairings, this one would be strong enough to stand up to a heartier pasta dish like spaghetti alla carbonara.

2010 Argento Torrontés
Procedencia Salta
$13, 13.5% abv.
This comes from way up north near the Bolivian border. Bright pineapple aroma, floral, mineral finish. Tart acidity. Medium body. This is a delicious, fascinating wine and is highly recommended. It would be a lot of fun to serve to someone who has never had a Torrontés before. Roast up a bunch of quail, lay out some figs and goat cheese, and have a blast.

2009 Argento Cabernet Sauvignon
Mendoza
$13, 13.5% abv.
Mild aroma of blackberries and cherry. It has a thin body with low fruit and low tannins, really restrained for a Cabernet Sauvignon. It's the only cab sav I've ever had that was light enough to pair really well with grilled salmon.

2009 Argento Bonarda
Mendoza
$13, 13.5% abv.
Big nose of raspberries and pomegranate. Tart red berry flavors, medium tannins, and a long finish. Bonarda is also known as Charbono in California, and originally comes from the Savoie region of France where it's called by names like Corbeau and Charbonneau. It's mostly been a blending grape, but as always, I find it interesting to taste these on their own. Like Malbec, it's a French grape that has really flourished in Argentina and is the country's second most planted grape.

2009 Argento Malbec Reserva
Mendoza
$16, 13.5% abv.
Dark plum and earth, with a touch of ash. Low tannins, a soft, round mouthfeel, and a balanced fruit flavor. Smooth and tasty now, but should be even better in a couple of years. Excellent bargain, and highly recommended for any red meat dish.


Note: These wines were received as samples.

⠠⠁⠇⠑⠭⠀⠑⠇⠍⠁⠝⠀⠺⠊⠝⠑⠎

Alex Elman started out early in her wine career working in sales and production for Perrier-Jouët Champagne. Later, she worked in wine trading with her stepfather and got exposed to the import world. But by the age of 27, she had gone completely blind from complications related to diabetes.

Elman continued working in the wine business, and in 2009 decided to release Argentinean wines under her own label. These bottles shown here represent the first release in the fall of 2010, which also includes a Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.

Braille on wine labels is nothing new, although it's often ignored. Due to space limitations on labels, there's only so much information that you can provide in such a format. Handheld devices combined with QR codes might be a good solution for providing more detailed information in the near future.

On this closeup, the Braille spells out "Malbec", while the other label says "Torrontés", and in case you're curious, the title of this post simply reads "Alex Elman Wines". The labels also show Elman's seeing eye dog Handley, a yellow Labrador. Dogs and wine keep popping up in the oddest places. Some are working dogs like Handley, some keep people company at wine shops and tasting rooms, and others, like mine, alert me to the arrival of new deliveries.

2010 Alex Elman Torrontés
Mendoza
12.8% abv.
This has light peach and apricot aromas, fresh and subtle rather than jammy or concentrated. The fruit flavors are balanced with low acidity, a round mouthfeel, and a short finish. I'd really like this with some roast pork stuffed with dried apricots and walnuts. Torrontés is a little mysterious, since it's most likely derived from European grapes bred together in California and then exported to Argentina during the Spanish colonial period. It's sort of the white version of Malbec in that Argentina turned out to be a perfect environment for it, while there's little planted elsewhere in the world.

2009 Alex Elman Malbec
Mendoza
13.5% abv.
If you ever wanted to explain to someone what a basic young Malbec tastes like, this is a great example. It's got a meaty profile with blackberry and ash aromas. Solid dark fruit flavor with medium tannins and a long finish. It's the combination that I remember from the first dozen or so that I tried. Like many Malbecs this will pair with almost any red meat, and don't be afraid to use a full-flavored sauce like reduced red wine and shallots or a stronger marinade like soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce.


Note: These wines were received as samples.

2009 Tamari Torrontés

I haven't had one of these in a while... This 2009 Tamari Torrontés is from La Rioja, Argentina. $15, 13.3% abv. Aromas of peach and lemon, and a touch of flowers. Overripe fruit flavors with firm acidity and minerality. Slightly bitter finish. It is completely dry, and I think just a hint of sweetness would balance it out well. Fortunately this is an opportunity to compensate with the food.

I had some grouper, but hadn't made up my mind on how to fix it. The wine had elements of tartness and bitterness, so I decided to add sweet and savory to the fish with a honey-soy glaze. Some black beans, fresh cucumbers, and I had a decent little dinner. And with all the acidity in the wine, there was no need for a little squeeze of fresh lime juice on the fish and beans. I was thinking this would be a good match for various Cuban seafood and poultry dishes.

Tamari means "to do everything with passion" or "be passionate" in the language of the Huarpe, the extinct tribe native to the Mendoza region in Argentina. Well done label, too--arty without being annoying or indecipherable, only two fonts, and the brushstroke "T" is overlaid in a glossy black ink that makes it look wet and freshly applied.

Southern Chicken Dinner, Reinterpreted

The latest dinner party ended up being a bit smaller than expected due to some cancellations and conflicts. While some part of me wonders if I've scared people off with obscure critters and organ meats, a five-person dinner is a better platform for trying some new recipes and techniques. In the worst case scenario, you can just ditch it all and order a pizza, and everyone goes home happy.

I decided that I wanted to do a Southern dinner with white wines, but with a twist: the recipes would come from everywhere but the South, and the wines would be lesser-appreciated grapes.

I've made homemade macaroni and cheese lots of times--stovetop, baked, different cheeses, etc. But a few years ago in Boston I had it with lobster, and fell in love. (The various seafood casseroles up there are seriously incredible comfort food in the winter, and for a poor lost Southerner experiencing his first Massachusetts December, it was a way to stay sane.) I grabbed a pair of big rock lobster tails from Costco. I boiled them for about two minutes just to be able to remove them from the shells, and then threw the shells back in the water to make a very thin lobster stock. I roughly chopped the tail meat and put it on ice while getting everything else ready.

I made a Béchamel sauce with half & half, and whisked in 8 oz. each of Fontina and aged sharp cheddar. I fished the shells out of the water and used that to boil the macaroni, drained the pasta, threw everything together in a buttered dish and evenly distributed the mostly-uncooked lobster. I topped it with a little grated Dubliner cheese, and baked for about half an hour. Delicious, and certainly a crowd pleaser.

I served it with the 2006 Royal Tokaji Furmint from Hungary by way of dear friend Thomas R. $18, 14% abv. Smoky, musky, just a touch of honey, peach, and lemon but with restrained acidity. Long finish for a white wine, one that keeps you thinking for a while. I've only had this grape in the super-sweet forms before, and it was amazing to taste the grape in a dry presentation. If you ever get the opportunity to try a dry Furmint, don't pass it up.

Pollo al mattone or "chicken under a brick" is a traditional preparation in which chicken is cooked with a brick on top of it. Unlike the allegorical names of some Chinese dishes, Italian ones are pretty straightforward. I'd never eaten it or made it, but figured why not give it a shot? These "Cornish game hens" were gigantic like the two kids on the Little League team that are a foot taller than all the other players. Faked birth certificates, growth spurt, or steroids? Regardless, they were pretty tasty. My heat wasn't high enough, so the skin didn't get crispy, but the leg quarters ended up with a flavor and texture similar to duck confit.

We've got an Italian chicken in place of regular fried chicken... how about an Asian-inspired cole slaw and a Greek watermelon salad? The former is #20 on a recent list of 101 salads written by Mark Bittman. (He doesn't give proportions, so have fun figuring out the assembly.) Napa cabbage, radishes, and a peanut-cilantro dressing. Pretty interesting. I've made the Greek thing before, but it's a lot of fun--feta and mint with fresh watermelon and red onion. You can play around with this and present it in many different ways.

For the wine, I picked the 2008 La Linda Torrontés from the Mendoza region of Argentina. $11, 14.1% abv. Lime zest, lemon curd, and the most wonderful floral aroma you can imagine. Full of lilies and daisies and other white flowers. Low acidity, smooth body, and a refreshing finish. One of the guests referred to the grape as South America's Viognier, and I agree--with a good example of either it's like walking into a garden and taking a deep breath.

By the time Grace brought out her cheesecake, we had consumed wine from two countries and dishes from four unrelated culinary traditions, but the overall meal was still recognizable to any attendee of a church potluck dinner. And nobody went home hungry, always the sign of a successful dinner.

P.S. Bonus photo of me with two of the guests after dinner.

New Year's Eve Dinner

First off, a quick roundup. In 2005, I reviewed around 450 wines. In 2006, I reviewed 320 wines, 24 beers, and 14 spirits. I'm not slacking off, I just started getting a little more selective in the tastings I attended. Basically, for the life of this blog there's roughly 800 unique beverage reviews, not to mention all of the food articles I've written.

Last Friday, I was walking through the grocery store and noticed a sale on Porterhouses for $5.39 per lb. Now, for New Year's Eve, Paul and I were planning on roasting a whole beef tenderloin like I did for my birthday. After all, we had 6-8 people attending the gathering. But I looked at that price and hatched a new plan. When doing a dinner party, I rarely get my heart set on any particular ingredient; I prefer to look for what's in season, then what looks good, and if possible, what's on sale. And this was a price I couldn't pass up. So I had the butcher cut me two three-inch thick steaks. And I had to repeat my order, and explain what I was going to do with them. Shortly thereafter I walked out the door with eight pounds of beef and an approving nod from the butcher. That's two 64 oz. steaks for those keeping score. Generally you only see steaks that large in places where there's some sort of challenge about eating the whole thing in under an hour without getting sick.

There were many delicious appetizers provided by the ladies (spinach-artichoke dip, mozzarella sticks, seven-layer dip, etc.), and these were consumed with a few glasses of the 2005 Tittarelli Torrontés Reserva from Argentina. It's bright and fruity, with a brash flavor of grapefruit peel that can be a little aggressive on its own, but pairs nicely with appetizers that include sweet and savory elements.

Torrontés isn't the most popular white grape in the world, and mainly seems to flourish in Argentina. I enjoy most of the wines I taste from this grape, and think that with some work and good marketing it can stand on its own against similarly priced Sauvignon Blancs from New Zealand. I'm continually fascinated by the European grapes that flourish in South America.

Since a few weeks ago when we talked about the big Porterhouse or T-Bone roasts, I decided I had to cook one or two of them. Here's the final plate, the beef with some fried fingerling potato chunks, a selection of fancy baby lettuces, and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette (honey really helps out). So how did I cook the steaks? I grilled them for about five minutes on each side over a really hot fire, and then transferred them to the oven into a roasting pan with a rack. I inserted digital thermometers into each and roasted the steaks at around 400°F until approximately 130°F internal temperature. This proved a little difficult, as the interior of a 3" thick Porterhouse seems to vary quite a bit in its substance (I measured from the thickest central portion of the strip). While the roast as a whole was a little more on the medium side than I would have liked, there was plenty of lush, juicy rare steak to be had, with nicely caramelized edges on the top and bottom. Throughout the roasting I basted the steaks with olive oil using a heavy stalk of homegrown rosemary.

To serve it, I simply carved off the filets and strips, and then sliced up the meat with the grain. The idea here is long slices, and then when you cut up the slices on your plate, you're slicing against the grain and thus tenderness and chewing aren't negatively impacted. I basically laid out the slices on a big platter and served the guests in the following manner: "Point to the color you like, and tell me when to stop loading your plate."

The red wine for the evening was the 2003 Bogle Phantom, made of 59% Petite Sirah, 39% Zinfandel, and 2% Mourvèdre. It's an odd California blend: ignoring grapes, is the inspiration Rhone or Bordeaux? I tasted it a few months ago, and still love this wine. Full of dark berry flavors, firm tannins, and utterly delicious. We tasted this wine when it was first opened, and then drank it after two hours in the decanter. The decanter definitely helped with some of the youthful rough edges, yet the wine didn't taste stale or oxidized--my biggest fear with letting wine sit around and breathe for so long. It also didn't seem to pick up any of the food aromas from the cooking process.

Not a bad way to celebrate the New Year.