The Wine Log Blog

A blog of my wine tastings and reviews for anybody who likes wine or just wants a good wine recommendation. This site will be especially useful to those in Ontario, Canada shopping at the LCBO. You can search my reviews by using the search bar located at the top of the page. ----Note: Try refreshing the page if you don't see anything new!----

Saturday, January 03, 2009

Mostly South America

This tasting was based around the theme of South America. Argentina is known for its Malbecs and Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile has been recognized as having the potential for high quality for some time now, so naturally these were the most obvious groupings to structure the tasting around. For good measure a Malbec from Cahors, France was thrown in to compare with the Argentine versions. My ratings were assigned without knowing the Wine Spectator scores to avoid any bias.

Chilean Cabernet

2002 Cabernet Sauvignon – Domus Aurea (Viña Quebrada de Macul)
This was an elegant wine that displayed licorice candy, wine gum, thyme, red plum, and juicy raspberry character. A light barrel toast comes through in just the right proportion. This wine has a sweet edge and fine tannins, not a burly Cabernet. It reminds me of the 2005 Croix de Beaucaillou. Wine Spectator scores this 93 points: loam, mint, dark currant, fig and cigar smoke, plush texture, a beautiful rendition of cool climate Cabernet. My notes read very differently but I do agree that this is a great rendition of cool climate Cabernet. $39.99 USD 91

2005 Medalla Real Cabernet Sauvignon – Santa Rita
Right away the smoky effects of the barrel toast are apparent here along with green bell pepper herbaceousness which made it easy to distinguish from the Domus Aurea even when the bottles were blinded. The finish is a little tart and tannic but there is some dark fruit in the middle to hold it up. Lots of mulberry and a pure cassis aroma mingled with vanilla and that greenness. More heavy than the Domus Aurea, but the barrel toast and greenness make it less appealing to me. Wine Spectator scores this 91 points: tobacco, currant paste, loam, muscular structure, cedar, roasted vanilla. International Wine Cellar and Wine Enthusiast both score this 90. Now that I know what this costs I have to say it’s a good value. $19.95 90

2003 Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon – Concha y Toro
More depth and length than the previous two Cabs. Vanilla, black fruit (blackberry and plum), sweetened cranberry, light coffee and cigar tobacco with mineral tones to keep it interesting. Very suave wine with depth and class. Not every taster was as taken by this wine as I was, in fact a comment was made that the more aggressive style of the Medalla Real was preferable - wine is after all to a large degree about personal taste. Overall though, it was agreed that this was the best Cab of the lot. Wine Spectator’s 96 point scoring also supported the group consensus: currant, cocoa powder, dark fig, blackberry, loam, cedar, tobacco, mineral and coffee, long and authoritative finish that sails on. Reading the Wine Spectator notes now it’s interesting too see how closely they compare to mine. $70 USD 94

Malbec

2003 Catena Alta Malbec- Catena Zapata
After the Cabs this was a real change of gears. The overtness of this wine appealed to a broader range of tastes. Salty, sour plum, licorice, dark fruits, mineral and a long fruity and salty finish. I’m always reminded of salty licorice candy or preserved salty sour plums when I have a good Argentine Malbec, and those characteristics were certainly evident here. 94 from Wine Spectator: flashy and seductive, blue fruits, exotic mocha and spice notes. Definitely flashy! $50-60 USD, around $60 CDN 91

2004 Le Cedre – Chateau du Cedre
A massive wine! The phrase “It’s punishing, but I like it!” was used frequently, and with good reason. This has immense grip and hefty tannins that need 5-10 years to mellow out. It is mouth puckeringly astringent on the finish but full of tobacco, light floral elements, sandalwood, and cherry cola characteristics that are very entertaining. Only with lots of time in the glass does the sour salty plum I associate with Malbec come out, compared to the Argentine versions which display this right out of the bottle. Frankly, I like this more than the more overt Argentine style because there is more structure and depth. Wine of the Night for Adam and I. 95 from Wine Spectator: “Very elegant, with concentrated flavors of dark cherry, raspberry and cassis. Massively structured, with intense dark chocolate notes and plenty of rich spiciness”. Looks like we agree. $49 95

Also had a 2004 Alta Vista Alto which was flawed. It was not the wine Wine Spectator described as, “Big and bold with tar, loam, and bittersweet cocoa…core of black currant and plum fruit…Flashy, and pulls it off.” 93. Another flop was the 2006 Montes Alpha Syrah which was not up to the 90 Toronto Star rating but not obviously flawed.

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