Wine question:

[false_Aest]

Malbec.

Friend loves it. (I like it too but I'm not a wine freak. )

Love to give it as a gift. Other than choosing by the label design and price I dunno what to go by.

3 price ranges:

< $15
$15-$25
$25+

Suggestions?

[bironi]

Pretty sure my wife likes the same label.

[mistermo]

It's not a label so much. It's a type of wine usually grown in S. America, particularly Argentina. It's a good full bodied wine that's starting to creep up in price because it's been discovered. I can't offer any recommendations except that you can't go wrong with Trader Joe's recommendations. They always have the best inexpensive wines and I'd trust their recommendations. I find it hard to spend too much on wine anymore because there are so many good inexpensive options (especially at Trader Joes). So, I'm not much help except that I support your tastes and malbec is a good wine to give as a gift because it's not your run-of-the-mill variety, which shows you have some good taste.

[false_Aest]

which shows you have some good taste.

Well, it's that or Carlo Rossi ;)

I'll check out Trader Joe's the only problem is that Wine/Spirits stores in PA are all owned by the State.

I'm sure TJ's has something on the web.

[SamIAm]

I have no idea regarding the availability of these wines, but this is what a search of 2007 90+ point Malbec wines in that price range yields:

Wine Rating Price

Fabre Montmayou Malbec Gran Reserva 92 29
Luca Malbec 92 27-40
Tikal Amorio Malbec 92 26-31
Achaval Ferrer Malbec 91 18-24
BenMarco Malbec 91 15-21
Susana Balbo Malbec 91 23-28
Vina Cobos Malbec El Felino 91 16-22
Alma Negra Sparkling Rose Malbec 90 22
Bodega Goulart Malbec Reserva 90 19
Crios de Susana Balbo Malbec 90 15
Dona Paula Malbec Estate 90 18
Finca Sophenia Malbec Reserve 90 18

[maunahaole]

SLightly OT reply, but if you like malbec, look for Luzon Jumilla. Spanish, cheap and good. Luzon is the brand, Jumilla is the variety. I get it here for under $10.

[572cv]

Malbec from S. America can be quite good, but its terroire is quite different from the original grape region around Cahors. It is not a widely known French wine in the U.S. but is really quite good. There is at least one Cahors Malbec around which is distributed by the negotiant Kermit Lynch. If you see that one, it is a safe bet. It was around $15 last I looked. Get this, or equal, and an Argentinian malbec, or more or each, a leg of lamb, have a barbecue. Then research bike riding near Cahors in the Lot River area and plan a trip to see where the wine is made. I speak from experience.... Fabulous area, Great riding, esp in Spring or Fall when the temperature is cooler and the crowds are non existent.

[blschaefer1]

Of the list above from SamIam, I've had both the Dona Paula and the Benmarco. Both outstanding. The Benmarco has brighter fruit, the Dona Paula more oak and earth. Can't go wrong either way.

[mikki]

Malbec

One of the traditional "Bordeaux varietals", Malbec has characteristics that fall somewhere between Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. A midseason ripener, it can bring very deep color, ample tannin, and a particular plum-like flavor component to add complexity to claret blends.

Outside Bordeaux it is known as Côt and, in Cahors, also as Auxerrois. There are in fact hundreds of local synonyms, since Malbec at one time was widely planted in nearly every area of France. Sensitivity to frost and proclivity to shatter or coulure are the primary reasons Malbec has become a decreasing factor in most of France. Although plantings in the Medoc have decreased by over two-thirds since the mid-twentieth century, Malbec is now the dominant red varietal in the Cahors area. The Appellation Controlée regulations for Cahors require a minimum content of 70%.

Malbec truly comes into its own in Argentina, where it is the major red varietal planted. Much of the Malbec vines there were transplanted from Europe prior to the outbreak of phylloxera and most is therefore ungrafted, planted on their own roots. Sadly, over the years, phylloxera has infested Argentina, too, and vineyards are now being replanted on resistant rootstock.

Argentines often spell it "Malbeck" and make wines from it that similar in flavor to those made in Europe, but with softer, lusher structure, more like New World Merlot. Another difference: where French examples are usually considered short-lived, Argentine Malbecs seem to age fairly well.

Malbec is also planted in Chile, and there's relatively little and recent acreage in California and Australia. It is usually blended with other red varietals in these countries.

Successful Argentine Malbec growers claim that, in order to develop full maturity and distinction, Malbec needs "hang time" even after sugar levels indicate ripeness. Otherwise, immature Malbec can be very "green" tasting, without its characteristic notes of plum and anise.

[Ken Robb]

I don't know nearly as much as the rest of the posters but a novice can't go wrong ATMO with any of the wines sold under the Cameron Hughes label. He has a good palate and travels the world buying overstocks from good producers. His deal is that he won't tell from whom he bought them but he will tell the region and tech info about the wine. He then sells them at $8-$15 retail. He has a good web site and our Costco sells them.
I started buying his stuff when he was on Release #8 and he's now well over #100.
It's sometimes possible to do better at a given price point but I've never had anything from him that wasn't good and a fine value. As you can imagine, each release is limited and the quantity varies greatly. I have occasionally been disappointed to find after trying a sample bottle that there was no more available after a couple of days so I couldn't buy my "winner" in quantity.

I've never seen an ad in the general media for Hughes' wines so using them as modest gifts allows you to share something of an "insiders' tip" with the recipients. Tasting these wines will let you learn what varietals you like and want to explore farther with little risk of getting a real stinker.

[Pete Serotta]

SamIam is great at picking reds......I had one of his picks Ruston this past weekend AND it was VERY VERY tasty......


Mikki also can select and savor a good red.......


Ken and I still have to get together for a few one of these days...


COSTCO has some MALBEC that is inexpensive and cheap - - NOT nearly as good as that Ruston though :D :D

[jemoryl]

+1 to what mikki and 572cv write. Just a few observations:

Traditionally made Cahors tends to be fiercely tannic and should be aged several years to settle the roughness. There are now some producers who make Cahors in a more immediately friendly style.

Don't always go by WS/WA points. To a certain extent these will reflect how big, slick and expensively oaked a wine tastes. In Argentinian Malbec there are some inexpensive bottlings that are very nice - since I can't say what you have in your market you might just try a few. One nice thing about the lower end bottlings is they often lack the lavish oak that seems to come with the ambitious point-seeking luxury cuvees.

[Volant]

OT, but is wine an acquired taste? I can't seem to stand the stuff. But, I also remember the first beers I ever drank and I didn't care for them either. Being 'force-fed' them in college helped over-come that stigma. Is it true for wine too. You just need to cram a lot down before it becomes palatable?

[Pete Serotta]

My wife still talks about the "swirl" boone's farm, lancers, we drank 25 years ago....

In my experience most folks start on white and somewhat sweet and then move over time to drier and more body wines... At some point they try reds and go from Merlot, Pinot, to Cab and ZIN,,,, just my view but it is acquired over time and with help of friends...


BTW, my wife still does not like any wines but a BRUT or Champaign/




OT, but is wine an acquired taste? I can't seem to stand the stuff. But, I also remember the first beers I ever drank and I didn't care for them either. Being 'force-fed' them in college helped over-come that stigma. Is it true for wine too. You just need to cram a lot down before it becomes palatable?

[mikki]

COSTCO has some MALBEC that is inexpensive and cheap - - NOT nearly as good as that Ruston though :D :D

Costco actually has an outrageously good cabernet under their own label!! (forget the actual name) but it is from the same appellation as Silver Oak and Harlan Estate. Fabulous. Cheap.

[mister]

i've gotten alot of argentinian reds that i've been happy with especially for the price. most have been blends.
australian wines i like too, nice and robust have been most i've had.

alas, i've moved more towards beer again now that it's getting warm out. once i get the garden planted this weekend it's time to buy the stuff to start brewing beers. gotta get a couple batches in because i've got hops growing right now :banana:

[mikki]

OT, but is wine an acquired taste? I can't seem to stand the stuff. But, I also remember the first beers I ever drank and I didn't care for them either. Being 'force-fed' them in college helped over-come that stigma. Is it true for wine too. You just need to cram a lot down before it becomes palatable?


Yes, definitely an acquired taste. I am from wine county and hated the taste of wine as I grew up around it. However, when I think back, those "tastes" were all of fresh out of the barrel tastes or cheap wine. Rot gut. If you start tasting really good wine at your wine buddies house or in a real wine tasting, you will start to be able to define the tastes you like: smoke, spice, chocolate, fruit forward, etc.

It then is just a matter of your own favorite taste and you go from there.

FYI: I remember as a person in my twenties I actually LIKED the taste of Frieza...came in a box!! LOL!!!

[Ken Robb]

To see if you can enjoy wine try a medium body red like merlot or zinfandel of moderate alcohol content (12-13%) with your next steak and see what you think. Wine and food can be a magical combination.

[thinpin]

Traditionally made Cahors tends to be fiercely tannic and should be aged several years to settle the roughness. There are now some producers who make Cahors in a more immediately friendly style.


Very true, the older style Cahors need upwards of 5-6 years in the bottle to be approachable, and then really need food.

2 good Australian Malbecs to look out for are Cullen's "Mangan" and Ferngrove's King Label Malbec both from west Australia.