Bodega Renacer- Enamore 2007

Bodega Renacer- Enamore 2007
Malbec
Mendoza, Argentina


Blending fruit from 3 different Mendoza regions this great malbec has hints of figs, chocolate, liquorice and coffee and packs a toasty finish.

Its a boutique wine and production is limited, if in the mood for a more adventerous malbec this would be a good place to start.

Price U$ 25

Tasting menu at La Bourgogne, Buenos Aires

I usually don't hang out in super fancy restaurants, but it was my birthday and I'm in Buenos Aires! So my girlfriend and I treated ourselves to a full tasting menu at chef Jean-Paul Bondoux'
"La Bourgogne", which is supposed to be one of the best gourmet joints in Latin America.
I took some pictures and added images of wine pairings... my failed efforts to neatly pack lots of information into a small space led to this post looking like a cheap Chinese take out menu... oh well:) To see more detail click on the images.


The theme of the dinner was French food cooked with fresh Argentine ingredients and paired with local wines. We started out with a crab appetizer prepared with chamomile and violets (didn't know you could eat those). It came with Torrontes Finca Domingo 2008, which for me was one of the more interesting wine discoveries here. Torrontes is a white grape variety exclusive to Argentina. Young, sharp, unique; think Australian Savignion Blanc, but shorter and more explosive... lots of flowers, tangerine and mango.

Then we had frog legs with garlic and parsley, paired with Mendoza Chardonney. The frog legs were delicious and gianormous... Chardonney didn't do much for me... buttery oak, new world average. The third course was a vapor cooked Patagonian sea bass paired with Luigi Bosco Gala 3 Viogner 2006. Both were splendid; the wine is actually a mix of Viognier 50%, Chardonnay 40% and Riesling 10%... very complex and satisfying: lime, wood, vanilla.

Finally, the pièce de résistance: cranberry sauce venison served with Alta Vista Malbec Grande Reserva 2004. I thought the malbec was good, but needed to breathe... it kept opening in the glass, mostly blueberries, oak and plum. I prefer more structure, but I think this goes for malbec in general. This was a very polished, well crafted, Bordeaux style wine, perhaps a bit too polite for the venison steak...
The tasting ended with an Argentine cheese plate, raspberry tart and a glass of dessert wine from Luigi Bosco (which I can't say much about because I was pretty drunk already:)
Over all this was an amazing experience, which would cost 4 times the price in NYC. Definitely recommended. And Mr. Bondoux is quite a character!

Weinert Malbec, Mendoza 2004

Our first day in Buenos Aires! We decided to buy some of that legendary Argentine beef and cook it at home with garlic, shallots and fava beans. To go along I bought a bottle of what Karen MacNeil recommends as a classic Mendoza Malbec... Weinert 2004, 46 AR$ (13 bucks!), 90 points from Wine&Spirits.

Medium to full body, garnet color; prune, a bit of barnyard and eucalyptus (maybe mint) in the nose. Black cherry, oak and a tobacco/quinine finish.

This wine is really reminiscent of Bordeaux, very old world, very slick. Indeed pairs great with the steak, which, btw, turned out super... but probably will take a few days to digest:)

Septimo Dia- Malbec 2006 Bodega Septima Mendoza-Argentina

Septimo Dia- Malbec 2006 Bodega Septima Mendoza-Argentina

Price U$ 16

Making its debut in 2009, this new wine comes courtesy of Paola Borgo who arrived at Septima wines in 2008.
Septimo Dia has malbec grapes picked from three different estates in the Mendoza region which provide variety in this complex malbec wine, the winemaker aged this wine 10 months both in french and american oak barrels.
Its very balanced with lots of fruit flavors and hints of vainilla, currants and spices.
It can be hard to find as only 20,000 bottles were made but strongly suggest trying to hunt down a bottle.

Agua de Piedra, Mendoza, Argentina 2007 - Malbec

It looks like I am on Malbec roll these days, and this one has been the best one yet. Agua de Piedra is about an 11 USD bottle; great value. The texture rather silky and the color is on the lighter side for a Malbec. On the nose I got blackberry, salt, fresh cut grass and pepper. The view beyond the bottle by the way is the Hudson River Valley north of NYC.

On the taste this Malbec has some red plum, cranberry, and a hint of apple. It is slightly bitter on the aftertaste which is long lasting. Definitely worth its money and it actually surpasses many Malbecs that are even twice its price.

Otello Malbec Reserva 2007 Mendoza Argentina

Personally I am not a lover of Malbec wines but this was an interesting bottle. The retail cost of this bottle is about USD$ 25.00. The nose had blackberry, vanilla and hints of other fruits.

On the taste it was slightly bitter with black olives, quinine, and wood. It was fairly tannic and had a very long finish. It would be interesting to hear some feedback about this wine from a Malbec fan.

Alta Vista Premium- Malbec 2007

Alta Vista Premium- Malbec 2007

Mendoza, Argentina

Price USD 15

http://www.winerz.com/5h_ATVMAC07C.html

Another great bargain malbec from the Luyan de Cuyo region in Mendoza, Argentina´s biggest wine region.

This is a great daily wine with hints of blackberry, currant and were premium grapes have been selected and left in american-french oak barrels for up to 12 months.

It has quite a dense bouquet and is a easy to drink wine.

Winner of the silver medal at the prestigious Concours Mondial in Bruxelles in May of this year.

Siesta en el Tahuantinsuyu Malbec 2004

Siesta en el Tahuantinsuyu, Malbec 2004

Mendoza, Argentina

Exclusive Selection - Selected by Ernesto Catena

40 USD

http://www.shopritewines.com/vsku1522733.html

One of the famous Catena ¨boutique¨ wines this limited production Malbec is ready to drink and is a bargain for the limited production of less than 7,000 bottles.

This Argentine wine belongs to the line that tributes South America's ancient civilizations.

It has a rich red colour and has a smooth nose with hints of raspberry, cherry and vanilla. The first taste will show hints of caramel, citric fruits and honey and will have a very smooth aftertaste of mint, this is a very complex and interesting wine.

Recommended with red meats but it matched perfectly with thai food, contrasting the spicyness of the food.