Best Malbec Found: Achaval Ferrer

At roughly $20 this 2006 Malbec from Mendoza is ready to drink and it is the smoothest, most well balanced and most flavorful Malbec I had in a while. It is dark, purplish and beautiful in color. It has a fruity yet spicy aroma, you can smell that it is aged in oak but it is a perfect balance of new and old world aroma. Medium bodied yet complex, full of black fruits with an old world minerally (and not tannin-y) finish.
Achaval Ferrer is apparently one of the most reputable wine makers (despite being fairly new in the industry).
Received 92 points from Wine Advocate and can be stored until 2008.
I think I am going to buy a few bottles... I love it.
I just found out that you can buy it from costco at 16.99! Yay for affordable indulgence...

Shake Rattle Roll that Syrah

Red Car's 2005 release of Shake Rattle Roll Syrah is absolutely fantastic. Although I must warn you that this may be a pricey endeavour because Red Car makes wines in very limited quantities. This inky purple nectar of goody goodiness bursts with blackberry and plum flavors without the overbearing fruit forward Californian style. It is almost 100% syrah with a splash of Granache just to keep things interesting. It has a bit of earthy-ness and smoky aroma that sets this Californian beauty apart. It is extremely well balanced and so smooth on the palate. Shake Rattle Roll may be a misnomer...

Wine Spectator gave Shake Rattle Roll 93 points and I could not agree more (in case anybody asks whether I agree).

Oh and Red Car is a Santa Barbara winery that you all should get to know. Unfortunately their wine does not travel east very much. But you may want to travel west to get to know their amazing wines. Their bottles are a piece of art... Especially the Fight, one of the most amazing Syrahs ever...

Boston has a new Wine Spot: Albert Weinstein

Such a cool name! It was one of those, why haven't I thought of that moments when I found out about Albert Weinstein wine bar in Hyde Park. Looking at their cool website this place will be worth the drive from the city.
They have a laid back yet very serious attitude about wine which I am extremely impressed with. They absolutely sound like they know what they are talking about but they take the intimidation factor out of tasting with their chill ways...

It looks like I will be going to this place a lot. I will keep you posted once I make it to their tasting. The first one is in mid December. See you there?

Rose Obsession Continued: Montes

The last few weeks until you have to admit that fall is here... And what a better way to ease into fall than enjoy a great rose...

This weekend I have discovered a great buy: Montes Rose of Syrah Cherub


It is ~$15 or so, by a great Chilean producer and got a 90 pts from Wine Enthusiast. But beyond the reputation and the rankings, I am intrigued by a Rose made from Syrah grapes. It is a very beautiful pink, which makes me happy just by looking at it. It has a quirky label which also puts a smile on your face, the very necessarily morale boost we need as the weather gets cold and melancholic.

I have not tried it yet... but for now these are the tasting notes I stole from someone else... I will confirm later...

"Montes Cherub is a vibrant, flavor-filled Rose from Chile's coastal region. This Rose is made from Syrah grapes, which dictate both its brilliant color and swank flavor. The flavor profile offers rich red fruit, mainly strawberry and cherry with a touch of orange and spice. Montes Cherub Rose also boasts backbone and lively acidity, culminating in a long, delightful finish. A fantastic wine for end of summer gatherings. Consider pairing with shrimp, fish or prosciutto appetizers." About.com

Also, I would highly recommend try other Montes wines... Chile is definitely up and coming...

Cava makes 1+1=3

I was talking to a coworker about sparkling wines that inspired me to share the wisdom I have about a fantastic sparkling wine. I always thought a good brut sparkling wine had to be really really expensive until I tried Aurelo Cabestrero's 1+1=3 from Cava which is a $9-12/bottle delight! The experience really is more than sum of its parts as the wine's name suggests. It is citrus-y and minerally and has an extremely pleasant finish.

After discovering this budget wine, I looked into budget sparkling wines and found out that moderately priced sparkling wines come from Italy as Prosecco or Spain as Cava. The difference is that Cava is made using the traditional method from Champagne region in France, which is a more elaborate and expensive way of making sparkling wine and thus results in a more complex wine. Processo has a more fruit forward style.

Regardless of your taste preferences, you do not need to pay tons of money for a good sparkling wine. I think Cava especially 1+1=3 is extremely enticing in these hot summer days...

Two of my favorite budget wines

I find it tacky to include tasting notes etc but in my years of wine tasting I found these two to be the best value wines.

Number one is my BF's lovely find from religiously reading wine literature. It is a Calera Chardonnay. So thank you so much for introducing me to the best chardonnay ever. It is not oaky and very balanced. And only $12









Second is during a visit to Silverlake wine (my favorite wine store in Silverlake, LA, with kick ass wine tastings on Sunday). I still can't stand the ugliness of the dog on the label but the wine is awesome - especially at $10/bottle.

Here's what it looks like



It is called a Yard Dog because it is mainly made of Petite verdot that is usually only 5% of a blended wine - so it is the yard dog of the bunch: 60% Petite Verdot, 30% Cabernet and 10% Malbec (I wonder what kind of a dog a cab would be, it if were - I never thought of this and I guess I really don't need to)
I think it needs to air at least 30 mins for it to open up. It is a very smooth and full bodied wine with dark berries and all that...

Try them... I think both are very easy to find and widely distributed on the left and right coast of the country.

Discovering rosés...

Brix, in my opinion is one of Boston's best wine stores. From decoration to wine selection to wine tastings... I actually think it is officially in the Best of Boston, Citysearch guide. So for those of you Bostonians, who have not been there and would like to learn about wine/buy good wine should definitely pay a visit.

The cover of Wine Spectator this month was rosés, much to my surprise. I did not think to pay much attention to roses until I tried one at the Brix wine tasting and was very pleasantly surprised.

Rosés are a forgotten wine. When I think rosé, I think of white zin or other American blush wines. Sweet and almost desert wine tasting... Which has been the trend until now. Apparently, rosés are shifting towards a drier style, which makes them the perfect summer drink.

And unless you are an expert, I think one simple yet dumb to ask question (in my head) has always been, what is rosé? Is it a blend of white and red? Here's the answer according to wikipedia

There are three major ways to produce rosé.
1. Skin contact
Red-skinned grapes are crushed and the skins are allowed to remain in contact with the juice for a short period. The grapes are then pressed, and the skins are discarded rather than left in contact throughout fermentation as with red wine making. Because the skins contain much of the strongly flavored tannin and other compounds, this leaves the wine tasting more similar to a white wine. The longer that the skins are left in contact with the juice, the more intense the color of the final wine.
2. Saignée
The second way called saignée, or bleeding, is used when the winemaker desires to impart more tannin and color to a red wine, and removes some pink juice from the must at an early stage, in a process known as bleeding the vats. The removed juice is then fermented separately, producing the rosé as a by-product of the red wine.
3. Blending
The third method, the simple adding of red wine to a white to impart color, is discouraged in most wine growing regions now except for pink Champagne (wine region).

When you feel like a white burgundy, try a rosé instead. I think you will be pleasantly suprised.