Our hostess really wanted to do a tasting of wines from Argentina, and so 7 of us gathered up some bottles and descended upon her home to drink through a really interesting line-up of what that country has to offer. Many of us had never had so many Argentinean wines in one sitting, so it was both very educational and a lot of fun. All the reds were served blind--we only knew that all wines were from Argentina.
Starter whites:
2007 Crios de Susana Balbo Torrontes Mendoza. The nose is soft, flowery and pretty--with wide-open aromas of orange blossoms, white peaches, lychee and honeydew melon. It is open-textured, soft and limpid on the palate, with a bit more body than I might have expected based on the aromatics. Again, the floral, peach and melon come through in a fun, easy to sip white probably more appropriate for summer porch sipping.
2007 Avenue Torrontes Argentina. This Torrontes has a pretty similar aromatic profile, though perhaps just a bit more serious, though less precociously fun. It is a bit spicier in the mouth and not quite so lilting as the Crios. It demonstrates more density through the middle, but it is not quite as friendly—finishing with a hint of bitter smokiness.
2005 Bodega Catena Zapata Chardonnay Catena Alta Mendoza. The nose on this Chardonnay displays fine notes of quartz, powdered minerals, lemon peel and yellow pixie stick dust. I have to say I found it much more mineral than oak-driven—really the polar opposite of Jud’s impressions. In the mouth, I find that it really opens up and expands to fill the whole mouth. It is really smooth-textured and veers toward the heavier-bodied side. Pear fruit, smoke and brown spices combine in a lush, yet hardly flabby fashion. It does begin to allow some wood influence to rear its head toward the finish, but otherwise this is a nicely balanced and enjoyable option in new-world Chardonnay.
Flight #1:
2001 Yacochuya Salta Cafayate. I was looking forward to trying this wine from Michel Rolland. However, I think this was an imperfect bottle—seemingly heat-damaged somewhere along the line. The nose displays some roasted red fruit, some volatile notes and even a hint of spirits riding above stewed plum, tomato paste and balsa wood scents. In the mouth, it has a matte texture and lots of drying tannins. Flavors of dark cherry and smoke are a bit rough around the edges and the whole package lacks polish, though certainly not stuffing. I would be very interested to see what a better bottle could do.
2004 Bodega Catena Zapata Malbec Catena Alta Mendoza. My initial impression is that this absolutely must be a Syrah. It smells of meat, dark tire tread, black pepper, black cherry, tree bark, forest greenery, cardboard and jalapeno pepper. It has fine cohesion in the mouth, with an easy texture and flavors of blackberries and dark plums. It has a fairly lasting finish, with plush tannins that start out in check but eventually turn a bit sticky. It is enjoyable and drinks easy but never really steps out from the crowd.
Flight #2:
2005 Avenue Bonarda Reserva Argentina. There is a real feral quality to the nose here, with strong notes of menthol and grape stems overlaying aromas of black leather, peppercorns, and dark wild berries. In the mouth, it fluctuates between seeming gently rich and dense and feeling narrow and pinched. There are soft fuzzy tannins throughout, and it features some raw dark raspberry and black cherry fruit. It is a hard wine to get a fix on and certainly seems like it needs time if it is to come together.
2006 Luca Syrah Laborde Double Select Uco Valley Mendoza. Here is another wine from the Catena family--this one from Laura Catena, daughter of Nicolas Catena. I really like the bouquet on this wine, which features finely-delineated aromas of black currants, dried leather and jalapeno pepper accented by strong notes of fine coffee. It has a rounded structure, with plenty of ripe plush fruit that flows beautifully all the way through. Its dark cherry and black currant flavors accented by complex spices are very tasty and the whole package is finely-balanced with polished tannins. For such a young wine, it drinks very well right now. In the end, I was shocked to learn that this is Syrah--instead guessing Bordeaux blend all the way. By the way, this was my wine of the night.
Flight #3:
2006 Achaval-Ferrer Malbec Finca Altamira Uco Valley Mendoza. Right off the bat, one can tell that this is a wine of fine class and distinction. The fruit on the nose is ripe but restrained, deep but lifted. There are notes of espresso roast, black cherry, cool forest greenery, smoke, black tea, fine leather, tobacco and green pepper. The texture in the mouth is supple and fleshy and there is a strong spicy streak to this medium-bodied wine that runs from entry all the way through to the finish. It tickles the tongue with a combination of that intense spice and the wine’s tart, acidic edge. It has a core of finesse, but shows its youth right now with the sharp acidity, a faint hint of alcohol on the finish and the raw spiciness level. This was my # 2 WOTN, but in 3 to 4 years, I’m convinced this will be head and shoulders above the rest.
2002 Bodega Catena Zapata Nicolas Catena Zapata Mendoza. The initial impression on the nose is of all things black—black currants, black beans, blackberry jam and dark earth. Later on, a strong note of tobacco leaf folds in. The black notes eventually fade more to crème de cassis and dark cherry and gain more charm. In the mouth, this has a lot of fruit concentration, featuring dark cherry and chocolate flavors. The plush, velvety tannins grow more intense and a bit chalkier over time, but never create any sense of austerity. The wine pumps out the flavor, but also has class and is showing some nice layering already. After a few nights in the refrigerator, the wine held up very nicely and delivered a similar performance. This was my #3 WOTN.
Flight #4
2005 Bodega Mendel Malbec Mendoza. Aromatically, this wine is youthful and a bit rough around the edges-- with aromas of inner tube, white pepper, briery black berries, and tough-edged grape stems. Beneath that tough exterior, though, one senses some moderately sweeter dark cranberry and rhubarb fruit notes. It is not what I would call real enjoyable on the palate, where there is a distracting alcohol note right off the bat, and also warring sensations of intense acidic austerity and rough-edged tannins. There is also a lot of structure to work around, but the main feature right now is the moisture-sucking tannins. This one needs a lot of time if it is to come around, a lot like my impression of the 2004 last year. I really did not care for either vintage, truth be told, but maybe these are just too young to be drinking early.
2005 Bodega Mendel Unus Mendoza. This wine is 65% Malbec and 35% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aromatically, it is a whole lot more giving than the straight Malbec—with a big hit of exotic fruitcake spices and cloves, black currants, leafy blackberries, oak and an interesting jalapeno accent. There is real depth to these aromatics that is pleasing. It is generally viscous and rich in the mouth, but not showing nearly so much exoticism as on the nose—indeed, the wine feels dense, serious and perhaps even stand-offish at this stage of the game. It is extremely chewy, with plush dense fruit and fuzzy tannins that absolutely coat the teeth and tongue. The fruit is deep and sweet-tinged, but perhaps a bit primary at this point. The wine as a whole is much preferable to the basic Malbec, but it is just an infant full of baby fat and the raw ingredients to be something more significant down the road.
Flight #5
2006 Tikal Patriota Mendoza. Here we have another Catena-influenced wine, as the producer is Ernesto Catena--the son of Nicolas Catena. I believe I read somewhere recently that both Tikal and Luca share the same winemaker. In any event, this wine is 60% Bonarda and 40% Malbec. It has a lighter, more lifted sort of quality to the aromas--with rhubarb, grape stems, hard luggage, bark and mixed berries. The mouthfeel is also lighter, with some tingly lighter-bodied bramble berry and rhubarb fruit that is not especially deep, but is fresh and tingly. The tannins are easy and gentle, though they do rear up toward the back of the palate, which features some chalky mocha and cocoa notes.
2006 Tikal Malbec Altos de Mendoza Amorio. I like the nose here, which features rich, dense aromas of wild blueberries, loamy earth, wet forest and sliced jalapeno. It has a lot of grip and structure in the mouth, but counters that with a very nice feeling of seamlessness to the texture. The wine is a bit on the dry side, with plenty of smoky, bitter-tinged tannins, but solid concentration of fruit in a promising package. On day 3 after the event, we opened the leftovers and the wine showed really well, fanning out more on the palate and providing more sense of width, along with a bit more sweetness to the fruit. This is probably one that could use a good long decant before approaching. When all was said and done, I would rate this as my 4th favorite wine of the line-up.
Sweet wine with dulce de leche dessert:
2001 Chateau Memoires Cadillac. Caramel, crème brulee topping, dried apricots, confectionary sugar and a dusting of nutmeg aromas on the nose lead to flavors of dark nectarine and apricot, lime zest and caramel syrup carried along by fine tingly acidity. This is pretty darn tasty, with plenty left to give.
The group WOTN was the ’06 Luca Syrah (5 first place votes, 1 second and 1 third), followed by the ’06 Achaval-Ferrer Finca Altamira (3 first place votes, 2 seconds and 1 third) and then the ’02 Nicolas Catena Zapata (2 second place votes and 2 thirds) and the ’06 Tikal Amorio (2 second place votes and 1 third).
It should be noted that for the first time in recorded history, my personal top 4 wines were exactly the same and in the same order as the group voting. The group should really be worried…
-Michael
