A full-bodied Malbec with loads of blackberry, plum, dark cherry, raspberry, spice, cocoa and vanilla. Tannins are firm, so hold for 1 or 2 years then drink over the next 6 years.
Medium ruby in colour with a spicy-cedary nose of plum and an engaging light floral note. Medium-bodied, dry, fruity and floral but firm on the palate with red-plum and blackcurrant flavours and chalky tannins on the finish.
At the time of writing, the LCBO carried 178 Malbecs — not all from Argentina, but mostly. So, what to choose? Well, this is one of the best values in terms of price/quality. Dense purple in colour, it offers a cedary plum bouquet with mocha-chocolate notes. Medium- to full-bodied and dry, it’s well-structured with spicy plum flavours riding on lively acidity.
A wallet-friendly wine. Dense purple in colour, it has a smoky struck-flint, plum and cherry nose. At 14% alcohol, it’s full-bodied and dry, with savoury-herbal blackberry and plum flavours augmented by a floral grace note. Lively on the palate, it finishes firmly with ripe tannins.
An obvious, oaky and upfront Chardonnay with loads of pineapple, mango, lemon, yellow apple and honey. The palate is creamy and buttery, with a strike of acidity which provides lift. Fine length. Pairs well with halibut or salmon.
Sweet dusky and downy violets, cassis jam and balsamic jus flow through this Amarone-style wine through to a vanilla-pod finish. Blueberries, potpourri and alluring, intriguing violet flow throughout this plush, off-dry and full-bodied blend of Malbec, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Bonarda. What this wine has in impact (a lot!) it lacks in finesse (overt and clunky) at this stage. After harvest, the grapes were placed on drying racks outside, where wind and the elements dried the berries and concentrated the flavours and sugars. (The grapes lost approximately 30% of their weight in this process.) After a wild yeast ferment and MLF in French oak barriques, this wine aged for 12 months in new French oak. Alberto Antonini consults on this project, one run by winemaker Pablo Sanchez.
From the venerable house of Luigi Bosca comes this intensely coloured and perfumed Malbec full of blackberry, plum, blueberry, violets and anise. Full-bodied with good density and a lingering blue-fruit aftertaste.