Solid Malbec, Great Price

Andeluna 2009 Malbec ($9.99) Mendoza, Argentina


Winemaker, Silvio Alberto writes on the back of the bottle to, "Please enjoy this wine with our best wishes." I can say confidently that we did. This was a great pick up, especially for the price, from Hi Times.

It was a bigger Malbec. It had a dark, inky color. It had a great nose, though I'm not sure I picked up the "black currant," "cassis" or "lavender." I did agree with the "lush flavors" noted on the back of the bottle. It had a lot going on, yet it was balanced. It had a bit of spice, which before dinner seemed "smokey" and after dinner seemed to have a bit of a burn. Nothing to worry about though. This was a really, really nice bottle for under $10.


Grade: B 

Mystery Pinot

Chalten Reserva 2008 Pinot Noir $10ish?


I really have no recollection of buying this bottle, it's not on any of the receipts I've saved since starting this space. Maybe someone left it here? Strange. Since it was here, and didn't seem to be tampered with, I put my family at risk, took one for the blog, opened it and drank it down.

This was really tasty. It seemed like La Crema to me. Soft and smooth. Not a ton of flavor, but something easy to drink to wind down the night. Now I just wonder where it came from.

Grade: B-

Argentinian Deliciousness

Crios 2010 Torrontes ($9.99)


This bottle had 3 things in its favor that led to my selection at Total Wine: Price, Rating Tag (91 Points, though I don't recall who's rating it was), and being from Argentina. For me, Mendoza, Argentina is as reliable as a Stags Leap Cab, but at a 1/4 of the price.

The back of the bottle said, "an intensely floral, citrusy aroma similar to Viognier with the dry, crisp taste of Sauvignon Blanc." I don't put a whole lot of stock into a wine-maker's description; I've never read one that admitted that their bottle sucked. But this hit the nail on the head. When I poured it, I thought it was going to be too sweet, but sure enough, tasted like an awesome Sauvignon Blanc.

Grade time. Like a hard working, determined student that completes every assignment on time and does everything asked of them, yet deep down you know they're not bound for Stanford, they can still make the Honor Roll. Considering the price, the fact that "Crios" refers to the wine maker, Susana Balbo's children, and the cool label, this bottle gets an A.

Grade: A