Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

Is it Thursday already? It must be, yesterday being Wednesday, and all, and tomorrow being Friday and The Carpe Vinum Primer on the Wines of Argentina! And this, dear friends, is the Newsletter to Which the Announcement is Being Made! It’s an exciting week, what with the Argentine wine we’re pouring. Argentina has great quantities of great wines they’re producing down there, and the values are still to be had. I’ve seen the quality increasing over the years from the “wines-I’d-only-feature-with-other-South-American-countries” category to the “I’m-totally-ignoring-you-now-Chile” category. Let’s explore, shall we?

Argentina! I always thought the name of the country, considering it has the word “Argent” in it, that it translates to being a country of riches. That’s not far from the truth, as early explorers discovered great quantities of silver there. I’m sure the natives were just saying “What . . . ? This shiny stuff? Eh, it’s good for making jewelry, decking out your rims for a sweet ride or creating some wicked fronts for your teeth.” and the Europeans were saying “Say, could we borrow some of that to show the mother country?” and named the land Tierra Argentina, or “Land of Silver”. I’m sure nothing bad happened as a result of the natives sharing those riches. But I’m no History buff, as we all know. So let’s move on to the wine!

The wine in Argentina has been grown there ever since those aforementioned Europeans had landed there almost 500 years ago. Since then the country has always been a major grower, if only for the domestic Argentine market. After all, Argentina has always had one of the largest wine-drinking populations in the world. I’ve seen differing statistics of exactly how much that is, but it’s well over the wine we drink per capita in The States. But even that considered, the major push in the Argentine wine industry was really just the last 10 years, or so. And growing.

To know the Argentine wine, one must know the Malbec. It’s a grape variety blended in the French Bordeaux and worldwide in similar blends, as well as the primary grape in Southwest France’s Cahors region. Worldwide it has been downplayed as a single varietal, yet the Argentineans have made Malbec into a wine that has more power than many thought possible. In this way they’ve made it their own. Truthfully, I’ve very seldom had Malbec from outside Argentina that achieves the same power, complexity, beauty and finesse.

That considered, Malbec is the most-widely planted grape variety in Argentina. A couple years ago I read that Bonarda was the top-grown grape in Argentina, which had me confused and also wrongfully spreading that rumor. I haven’t since been able to find that article or any other indication that it was ever true. The upshot of that, as a lover of obscure wines, it interested me in the Bonarda, as well as other grape varieties in the region. We can so easily get lost in the sea of Malbec that is sent our way, but we shouldn’t miss out on all the other treasures the region has to offer . . . I mean, besides the silver.

So Friday, September 21st, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Argentina!!!
Gougenheim 2006 Tempranillo
Lurton 2006 Bonarda
Crios de Susana Balbo 2005 Syrah/Bonarda
Dona Paula 2005 Syrah/Malbec
La Posta del Vinatero 2005 Malbec

And Two More From the Land of Silver!!!
Tikal 2005 Patriota (Bonarda/Malbec)
Achaval Ferrer 2005 Malbec

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours.

Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is Zinfandel!

M