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Review: Malbado Luján de Cuyo Malbec (2019)
“Malbado” means “the bad one,” but this Mendoza Malbec actually wasn’t so bad. I pulled it from my strategic wine reserve (that is, the rack full of old Total Wine bottles) to uncork in the middle of a winter storm. Yes, this is a Total Wine private label wine with all the tell-tale signs: Big…
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Cheval des Andes tasting at Blind Bishop (Dallas, TX)
Malbec’s story is possibly the most poetic of all the grapes. From royal darling in the court of Eleanor of Aquitane, to trans-Atlantic pilgrim, to purple-hued hero of by-the-glass lists everywhere, this is a variety that has survived and thrived across centuries. France lost most of its Malbec plantings, first to phylloxera and then to…
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Catena Zapata tasting at the Wine Authority (Richardson, TX)
The fine wine was Argentine at The Wine Authority on Thursday. We hustled over after work to taste six wines from the Catena family in a presentation led by South American wine specialist Jorge Liloy. Catena essentially created the market for Malbec, planting the first vines in 1902 and elevating a minor blending grape to…
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Review: Trapiche “Tesoro” Uco Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (2021)
Recently, through weekly Merlot tastings, I’ve been rediscovering the joy of Merlot. And readers of this blog know about my recent infatuation (now entering its second year, so maybe things are finally getting serious) with Grenache. But my long-term honeyboo, my ride-or-die, my desert-island soul grape is still none other than Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s what…
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Review: Cruz Alta Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve (2021)
“Sex is like pizza. When it’s bad, it’s still pretty good.” That same principle does not hold true for 1990s sex comedies–for instance the movie Threesome in which it first appeared. When they’re bad…they’re just bad. But it can be said of certain wine styles. Especially big and bold reds from Mendoza, Argentina. I actually…