Gaucho100K

Hello slawecki-- while I agree that Broquel is a great wine for its price, please note that it is not the "better" label from Trapiche.

Broquel is sometimes (incorrectly) perceived as a higher end wine because the same market where it is available also carries the entry level Trapiche wines which have lower prices (sometimes 35% or more than what Broquel goes for). Despite the differences, Broquel is still inside the family of "everyday" wines made by Trapiche.

The better labels made by Trapiche include a number of blends and also some single-vineyard Malbecs. Im not completely up to speed on the portfolio of Trapiche labels that are available in your specific market, but here are some names for your to be on the lookout for:

Trapiche Medalla
Trapiche Gran Medalla
Trapiche Iscay
Trapiche Single Vineyard

willhe

Agree with others that wine thread is a good idea. The info can be used in Argentina while visiting & is useful while still in US or anywhere else Argentine wines are available. Great material for list-makers!!

monkey2

New to the forum, I find it exciting to find someone who clearly knows their way around the Argentine wine industry. I have visited the country several times in the past decade having previously been resident for 2 years inthe late seventies.

I have picked up on the references in the dining thread to Francis Malman's restaurant in the Escorihuela bodega and can confirm it as one of my favourite dining experiences in the world. Perhaps it was the influence of the wineries signature Malbec blend, the Don Miguel Escorihuela, but I had an unforgettable night.

Unlike one of our previous correspondents I have a love of dessert wines but have yet to find anything of note amongst my samplings of Argentine wines. I am a bit of a classicisist in this respect and prefer Semillon or possibly Chenin varietals with Botrytis influence. As a guide I recently tasted a young (2000 I think) d'Yquem and found it totally reset my yardstick. I am back in Ar. in Decenmber this year visiting the North West hopefully including a few Torrontes growers in Cafayete area. Could you offer any advice/recommendations for either sweet wines to seek out or fincas to visit?

Gaucho100K

Dear Monkey2--

The Miguel Escorihuela Gascon you mention is indeed one of the very good wines of Argentina. I think this label is many times overlooked, and even underestimated, as it looms behind huge names and labels like Angelica Zapata, Catena Zapata, Felipe Rutini, and others. In addition, this wine is a very strong competitor considering its price, well below the Felipe Rutini and the Catena Zapata.

As for dessert wines... there are a few notables:

1) Terrazas Afincado Petite Menseng
2) Achaval Ferrer Dolce
3) Rutini Vin Doux Naturelle

Of the above, only wine 3) has Botrytis involved in its production process. It is currently the only Argentine dessert wine with this characteristic. From your description of your preferences, the Rutini is probably your first choice.

monkey2

Many thanks Gaucho, I shall search out the Rutini, I hope it's available in half bottles. The petit manseng sounds an interesting option also, it's not a variety I have (knowingly) tasted. Interestingly an increasing number of small French producers are now labelling lesser known grape variety wines as varietals eg Gros Manseng, Melon de Bourgogne etc. This is clearly an example of the old world being influenced by the so called new.

On another topic, as I mentioned, I will be in the NorthWest for a week in December, any recommendations?

Gaucho100K

The Rutini Vin Doux is only available in 500ml bottles.

syzygy8

Gaucho, what's your take on the Tikal series of wines? Although I've yet to purchase it retail, when I see a bottle of Patriota on a wine list here in DC I usually go right for it. Aside from Patriota, I've also had another bottle of a Tikal blend, but can't recall which one. I do know I like them A LOT!

Any info on their pedigree? Are they sold in Argentina or made mostly for export?

And what's up with their bottles? (Unless you've had one, you wouldn't know this.) VERY heavy bottles!

Gaucho100K

Im a big fan of the Tikal series of wines. Tikal is part of the Catena Zapata Group, which makes quality wines in pretty much all price segments. They (Tikal) exports about 85% of its production - their local (Argentine) distribution is quite limited. Yes, the bottles are all huge and very heavy.... it seems to be a marketing trend amongst many producers these days.

The Patriota blend you mention is made up of Malbec and Bonarda. The other Tikal wines are Amorio and Jubilo. An older, now discontinued label of this series of wines was called Corazon. If you like these wines, I suggest you also look into tasting the labels of Luca, another line of wines from Catena.

Disclaimer: Im a Buenos Aires based Wine Merchant and I sell all these above mentioned wines.

Gaucho100K

Ive been trying a few "unusual" wines for Argentina over the past couple of days, including a few red sparkling wines that are noteworthy. Look out for the sparklers made by Sebastian Zuccardi under his Alma 4 label. Its actually the creation of 4 friends, under the leadership of Sebastian, who´s father is one of the shareholders of the large Zuccardi Bodega. Two of his most interesting wines are the Alma 4 Bonarda and Alma 4 Syrah, both red grape sparklers made as red wines.

jrussell

jrussell

What do you recommend as a serving temperature for the red sparklers? I have an Australian sparkling Shiraz (75%) Cabernet (25%) which I have been wanting to open but was unsure whether to the cool the wine. I assume the Shiraz will be about as assertive as the Alma 4 Syrah.

Gaucho100K, as has been said many times, you are an outstanding asset to this forum and I find your comments immensely helpful, since after many years of delay I am planning my first visit to Argentina in March.

donnyb

Aloha:
Thanks for the thread Gaucho, sorry we missed your list, would have been handy during our trip.

Just returned from B.A. and Patagonia...
Bopped all over, and sampled numerous Malbecs (luuuuuv the malbecs).
Our favorites were the Luigi Bosca reserve DOC, was around 70 pesos in the restraunts and 40 in the shops, and Saint Felicien, we tried a 1999, a 2002, and a 2003. The 2002 was dreamy, the 03 acceptable, and the 99 complex but needed 45 mins to air out. Similar in price or slightly less than the Bosca DOC.

Gaucho100K

Thank you for the kind words, and very glad to hear you will be heading down here in March. Im sure you will not be dissapointed and will have a great time.

Regarding temperature for red sparklers, Im of the opinion that they should be served at the same temp. as higher end white champagne. This means somewhat higher temperature than a NV Champagne, or approx 7-8 degrees C. I think lower temperatures would kill the nose competely. I dont think its appropriate to not chill red sparklers, since the CO2 would show very poorly at usual red still wine temperatures.

topperge

Tomorrow is my last day in BA and of course I got too busy to head over to Gaucho's shop to pick up my wine to take home with me. I'm looking for a Malbec, Torrontes, and dessert wine for under $100 US and packaged to bring back to the US (Is there a maximum number of bottles I can take?). I'd like to find a shop near 344 Santa Maria. Thanks in advance

Matt

gnaget

I was quite disappointed to find that many restaurants and bars do not have Torrontes. I was hoping to have some with my Pacu but the restaurant I went to only had pretty blah white wines.

I had been exposed to the grape only shortly before my trip because Trader Joe's had a $5 Torrontes and I needed a cooking wine for fish. I thought it was the best $5 white that I have ever tasted.

I only had Torrontes in one restaurant, some semi-fancy place near the busy square in Palermo Viejo (or is that some other Palermo???). The winery was Don David and it was much better than the stuff from TJs.

What's considered to be the creme de la creme of Torrontes? I think it is a remarkable grape.