Earlier tonight I went to an Argentinian wine tasting. We tasted 10 different wines blind. My favorites, in order were #10, #5 and #1. Wouldn't you know it that #10 was the 2004 Vino Cobos Malbec that I didn't try when I was in Mendoza a few weeks ago?!? Nice to know that eventhough I know I like wines made by Paul Hobbs that even in a blind tasting I pick out his wine as my favorite. Smooth, big fruit, a lot of alcohol, but nicely balanced. It's hard not to be influenced by an old standby or by wine ratings and it's reassuring to find that you like a wine you'd assume you would like in a blind taste testing.
The only problem is that the 2004 Vina Cobos Malbec is not only hard to find, but when you do find it, you'd likely pay upwards of $165 per bottle. My 2nd favorite wine, the #5, turned out to be Caro, a Cabernet Sauvignon (65%)/Malbec (35%) blend that is made by a partnership between Catena, a large Argentinian wine maker and Rothschild, the reknowned French wine maker. For $39.95 per bottle, it's a lot better deal than the Vino Cobos. It was dry, but juicy with notes of strawberry and cherry. Medium bodied with a medium finish. Delightful and very easy to drink.
The most surprising, however; was my 3rd favorite, #1, which turned out to be a 2006 Punto Final Malbec. It had a wonderful nose of spice and clove with some cherry notes. At first it didn't have much to it, but about 20 minutes later, it really opened up and was a bright, tasty wine that could hold up to a variety of foods or be served on its own with some light appetizers. And for $15 per bottle you can't go wrong.
Ultimately, I'll probably seek out the Punto Final because when all is said and done, for a really good bottle of wine, you can't beat $15. Though blind tasting is a good way to truly figure out your favorite wine, ultimately price has to be factored in because if you really like a $15 bottle and really like a $165 bottle, is it really worth another $150? As much as I like and respect Paul Hobbs, I cannot justify $165 when I know there's a $15 or even a $39.95 bottle out there that's pretty close.
This weekend is the Hoboken St. Patrick's Day Parade so it's going to be a heavy beer weekend.
Until the next sniff, sip or quaff (of wine),
Cheers,
Alli M.