Thank you for joining us for the March “virtual meeting” of the Wine Book Club. Many thanks to Dr. Debs of Good Wine Under $20 who originally proposed the idea for the WBC where bloggers and wine lovers all over the world come together for book reviews and discussions after reading a selected text. When Dr. Debs announced Adventures on the Wine Route: A Wine Buyer’s Tour of France by Kermit Lynch as this month’s Wine Book Club selection, I had to rummage through our storage room to find my dog-eared copy. Kermit Lynch, a Berkeley, California wine shop owner and wine importer wrote this book over 20 years ago as his reminiscences of a wine buyer’s tour of France. I first read the book before we took a trip to Bordeaux in 2003. I loved it then and would still recommend it today, even though it is a little dated.

Today the Kermit Lynch catalog is the stuff of legends, and the Kermit Lynch Importer imprint on a bottle commands quite a premium, but that was not the case when this book was written. Today, of course, you can add author and winemaker to his credits. In the 1980’s when he wrote this book, Lynch was a self-described “recently defected hippie.”

As I refreshed my memory on this book, several things stood out in my mind:

1. Kermit Lynch was the first importer to routinely use “reefers,” or refrigerated containers, to ship wines across the ocean. How wine had survived those month-long voyages over the years without “reefers” is truly amazing.
2. Kermit Lynch is a big proponent of unfiltered wines.
3. Kermit Lynch is a critic of blind tastings except with food. As our regular readers know, we at Wine Peeps are big proponents of blind tasting for reasons we have discussed at length, and the majority of our tastings are with food, either at our monthly wine tasting dinners or our smaller private tastings during the week.

My favorite quote from the book which garnered a dog-eared page and five stars:

“One cannot do justice to a great bottle alone. Someone with whom to ooh and aah is indispensable, someone with whom to share the intellectual and aesthetic stimulation that a great bottle inspires.”

Adventures on the Wine Route is arranged by region as Lynch and his party traveled from Loire to Bordeaux  to the south of France and then up through Southern and Northern Rhone, then to Burgundy and finally to Chablis. While the chateau, winemaker, and wine stories were great, I especially enjoyed the description of the regions, the sights, the lodgings, and the restaurants along the way.

Lynch is witty, opinionated, and extremely bright. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and I believe you will, too, especially if you ever plan to visit the wine regions of France. So grab a copy and start planning your trip.

Have you already read Adventures on the Wine Route? If so, please leave a comment and let us know what you thought of it.

For those of you who would like to read along with us in the Wine Book Club, the next two selections are:
April: The Science of Wine: From Vine to Glass by Jamie Goode
May: Passion on the Vine: A Memoir of Food, Wine, and Family in the Heart of Italy by Sergio Esposito

Cheers!

Whether or not those of us in the New World like it, French wines still set the bar against which the world’s wines are measured. And when it comes to red wine and the grape varieties of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, Bordeaux remains the world’s standard. With a reputation like that, it is no wonder that the premiere chateaux in Bordeaux command hundreds of dollars per bottle.

Much has already been written about the 2005 vintage in Bordeaux, the “vintage of a lifetime.” While the already sky-high Bordeaux prices absolutely went through the roof with the release of the 2005’s, the wonderful thing about such a perfect growing season is the fact that so much good fruit was to be had all over Bordeaux that quality wines were not limited to the First Growths. Numerous chateaux produced stellar wines, even those who sell their wines at very reasonable prices. And while the 2005 vintage has received the most attention, both 2004 and 2006 were also very good years which is great news for consumers as those are the three vintages you are most likely to find on the shelves of wine retailers right now.

Last week, we had the pleasure to attend the Today’s Bordeaux: 100 Classic, Contemporary, and Affordable Wines tasting in Seattle. The selected wines were all priced between $8 and $35 and were chosen by an independent jury in a blind tasting of nearly 350 wines. The purpose of the Today’s Bordeaux tasting is to highlight the diversity and increasing availability of affordable Bordeaux wines. The tasting featured red, white, and sweet wines. However, we decided to narrow the selection even further and tasted only the red wines that retail for $20 or under.

Why only red wines? While Bordeaux makes wonderful white wines and sweet dessert wines, Bordeaux is known the world over, first and foremost, for its red wines. After all, 89 percent of Bordeaux vineyards are planted with red varieties. And why limit ourselves to $20 and under? With the Wine Peeps mission of helping you get the most bang for your buck coupled with the current state of the economy, we wanted to be able to present our readers with a comprehensive list of high quality, easy on the pocketbook Bordeaux wines. Of the 36 wines that we tasted, five wines received a quality rating of 4 stars and 19 wines received a QPR rating of 5 bangs for your buck.

Without further ado, here’s a breakdown of all the wines that we tasted at the Today’s Bordeaux tasting. Under each Quality heading, the wine name and appellation d’origine controlee (AOC) will be listed along with price and QPR rating. Wines in bold type received a QPR rating of 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5).

Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
2005 Chateau La Fleur Bibian, Listrac-Medoc, $15, QPR: 5
2004 Chateau Larose-Trintaudon, Haut-Medoc, $19, QPR: 5
2005 Chateau Plain Point, Fronsac, $20, QPR: 5
2005 Chateau Armens, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, $20, QPR: 5
2006 Chateau Liversan, Haut-Medoc, $20, QPR: 5

Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
2006 Chateau Les Tours-Seguy, Bordeaux Superieur, $14, QPR: 5
2006 Le Chene de Puynard, Premieres Cotes de Blaye, $19, QPR: 5
2005 Chateau Landat, Haut-Medoc, $20, QPR: 5
2005 Chateau Les Ricards, Premieres Cotes de Blaye, $20, QPR: 5
2005 Chateau Les Tours de Peyrat Vieille Vignes, Cotes de Blaye, $20, QPR: 5
2006 Chateau Lieujean, Haut-Medoc, $20, QPR: 5
2005 Chateau Tour de Calens, Graves, $20, QPR: 5

Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
2007 Dourthe Beau Mayne Rouge, Bordeaux, $10, QPR: 5
2006 Chateau de Seguin, Bordeaux Superieur, $11, QPR: 5
2005 Grand Bateau, Bordeaux, $13, QPR: 5
2003 Chateau Roques Mauriac, Bordeaux Superieur, $13, QPR: 5
2006 Dourthe No. 1 Rouge, Bordeaux, $14, QPR: 5
2005 Chateau Cazat Beauchene, Bordeaux Superieur, $14, QPR: 5
2004 Chateau Greysac, Medoc, $15, QPR: 5
2006 Chateau Malbec, Bordeaux, $16, QPR: 4
2006 Chateau Pey La Tour Reserve, Bordeaux Superieur, $18, QPR: 4
2005 Lalande Balestard, Bordeaux, $20, QPR: 4
2005 Chateau Listran, Medoc, $20, QPR: 4

Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
2007 Chateau Pey La Tour, Bordeaux, $12, QPR: NR
2004 Chateau Grand Pascaud, Bordeaux, $13, QPR: NR
2006 Chateau de Lugagnac, Bordeaux Superieur, $15, QPR: NR
2006 Chateau Mirefleurs, Bordeaux Superieur, $16, QPR: NR
2005 L’insolent de Laville, Bordeaux Superieur, $17, QPR: NR
2005 Chateau Mirambeau Papin, Bordeaux Superieur, $18, QPR: NR
2004 Chateau Sissan, Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux, $18, QPR: NR
2006 Chateau Tour Prignac, Medoc, $18, QPR: NR
2006 Barton & Guestier Gold Label, Medoc, $19, QPR: NR
2005 Chateau Majoureau Cuvee Hyppos, Bordeaux Superieur, $19, QPR: NR

Quality: 2 stars (out of 5)
2005 Chateau de Birot, Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux, $13, QPR: NR
2006 Chateau Lagupeau, Graves, $15, QPR: NR
2006 Chateau Lamothe, Bordeaux, $15, QPR: NR

On our recent visit to South Africa, we had the opportunity to have an extended visit with Charles Back, proprietor of Fairview Winery, one of South Africa’s larger winemaking operations and producer of the “fun” Goats do Roam label widely distributed in the United States. Charles also owns Spice Route Winery and is a partner in MAN Vintners, a value label widely distributed in the U.S. You can read more about the wines we tasted at Fairview in my February 20th post, South Africa: A Day in the Paarl Region.

Charles was kind enough to answer my questions on a wide variety of topics. As you will see in the video, he is a passionate advocate for South African wines but is realistic in his assessment of the challenges they face in trying to increase their penetration of the U.S. market.

I found it especially interesting to listen as Charles made his case for South African wine, and why he believes that it is not truly New World nor Old World but somewhere in-between because of the unique geology of South Africa’s winemaking regions.

Here are some key clips from our interview:

Cheers!

This week’s Wine Word of the Week is decanting.

Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine:
Decanting is the optional and controversial step in serving wine, involving pouring wine out of its bottle into another container called a decanter. The most obvious reason for decanting a wine is to separate it from any sediment that has formed in the bottle which not only looks unappetizing in the glass, but usually tastes bitter and/or astringent. …. Another, traditional but disputed, reason for decanting is to promote aeration and therefore encourage the development of the wine’s bouquet.

Layman’s terms from Kori:
Decanting is the process of pouring wine from its bottle into another container, generally a glass container called a decanter. Older wines are decanted to remove any sediment while younger wines are decanted to promote aeration. Decanting is certainly not an exact science. Even the most knowledgeable wine enthusiast sometimes struggles with the decision of whether or not to decant, and if so, for how long.

Our host for the March edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday, the blogosphere’s monthly virtual wine tasting event, is Remy Charest of The Wine Case. Remy selected North vs. South as this month’s theme in which he asked us to taste and compare similar wines from different regions, one North and one South. He left the theme wide open to interpretation; North and South could be two regions within the same state, within the same country, or on opposite sides of the world from each other.

Regular Wine Peeps readers will not be surprised to see that we chose to blind taste four Syrah/Shiraz wines. We took the “similar wines” requirement one step further and selected wines with similar price points, $11-$22. And keeping in line with the North vs. South theme, we decided to focus on the Northern Hemisphere vs. Southern Hemisphere. Our tasting included wines from the United States (both California and Washington State), Australia, and South Africa.

As you’ll see from the tasting notes and ratings below, this tasting was awesome! Three of the four wines received 4-star ratings with the fourth right on their heels with 3.5 stars. And most importantly in these tough economic times, all four wines have a QPR rating of 5 bangs for your buck.

While each wine has its own unique characteristics, I thought that there were definite similarities between the Lincourt from California, the Peter Lehmann from Australia, and the Syncline from Washington. The Fairview from South Africa was the outlier. It was not as fruit-forward as the others and reminded me more of an Old World Syrah. Don’t get me wrong, it is a very good wine but the flavor profile of the other three is just a bit more to our liking.

Bottom line, you can’t go wrong with any of these. If you enjoy Syrah/Shiraz and are looking for excellent wines that are easy on your pocketbook, you’d be well-served to pick up a bottle of any one of these wines.

2005 Lincourt Syrah (Santa Barbara County, California): Deep red. Very aromatic. Mint and coffee come through on the nose. Black fruits and chocolate show up on the palate. Full-bodied with high tannins. Smooth, well-balanced, and extremely flavorful with a very long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Winery, $20; Available elsewhere, $17 to $25

2005 Peter Lehmann Shiraz (Barossa Valley, Australia): Dark red with slight browning around the edges. Floral, squash, and cedar box aromas lead to flavors of blackberry and black cherry. Medium to full-bodied with medium, dry tannins and a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: MadWine.com (Seattle), $13 [2006 is currently available vintage]; Available elsewhere, $13 to $23

2006 Syncline Syrah (Columbia Valley, Washington): Very aromatic and flavorful. Aromas of black pepper and black fruits. Chocolate flavors come through on the palate. Medium to full-bodied with medium, dry tannins. Smooth with a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Esquin Wine Merchants (Seattle), $22; Oregon Wine Merchants (Oregon), $21.95

2005 Fairview Shiraz (Paarl, South Africa): Different aroma and flavor profile than the others. Not much fruit. Aromas and flavors of black licorice and bacon bits dominate. Full-bodied with high tannins and a long finish.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Wine Exchange (California), $11; Shoppers Wines (New Jersey), $12.49

The inaugural Sip of Snoqualmie, benefitting Encompass, was held last Saturday at the Snoqualmie Casino in Snoqualmie, Washington (about 26 miles east of Seattle). Encompass is a non-profit organization whose mission is to nurture children, enrich families, and inspire community in the Snoqualmie Valley.

Thirty-two Washington wineries were on hand pouring their wines during this tasting extravaganza. The event was a resounding success with more tickets sold than anticipated, many purchased on the day of the event. Due to the last minute ticket sales, several of the wineries ran out of wine before the conclusion of the event. We tasted every wine that we could; although some wineries had run out of one or two of their wines by the time we reached their booth. In addition to the tasting, money was raised for Encompass through a silent auction and raffle.

In the course of the evening, we discovered several wineries that were new to us. Two of those wineries, Kalamar and Pleasant Hill, are producing wines from emerging varieties in the state of Washington. We thought two of the best wines of the night were the 2006 Kalamar Sangiovese and the 2006 Pleasant Hill Petit Verdot.

I must say that by looking around the bustling casino and then joining hundreds of fellow wine lovers in the ballroom for the tasting, on this particular night, you would never have guessed that we are currently in the midst of an economic crisis.

Here’s a breakdown of the wines that we tasted at Sip of Snoqualmie. Under each Quality heading, the wine name and region will be listed along with price and QPR rating. Wines in bold type received a QPR rating of 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5).

Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
2006 Chandler Reach Monte Regalo (red blend), Yakima Valley, $22, QPR: 5
2006 Kalamar Sangiovese, Yakima Valley, $25, QPR: 5
2006 Five Star Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, Walla Walla Valley, $32, QPR: 5
2006 Pleasant Hill Petit Verdot, Columbia Valley, $29 (will be released in May), QPR: 3
2005 Northstar Merlot, Walla Walla Valley, $60, QPR: 3

Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
2006 Sagelands Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, $10, QPR: 5
2006 Desert Wind Ruah (red blend), Columbia Valley, $13, QPR: 5
2007 Claar Cellars Riesling, Columbia Valley, $13, QPR: 5
2006 Revelry Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, $15, QPR: 5
2005 Saint Laurent Merlot, Wahluke Slope, $18, QPR: 5
2005 Kestrel Cabernet Sauvignon, Yakima Valley, $22, QPR: 5
2006 Mannina Cellars Cali (Bordeaux-style blend), $17, QPR: 4
2005 Chandler Reach Corella (red blend), Yakima Valley, $18, QPR: 4
2006 Pleasant Hill Lemberger/Zinfandel, Walla Walla Valley, $18, QPR: 4
2007 Saint Laurent Chardonnay, Wahluke Slope, $18, QPR: 4
2005 Snoqualmie Reserve Syrah, Columbia Valley, $20, QPR: 4
2006 Vin du Lac Cuvee le Rouge (red blend), Columbia Valley, $20, QPR: 4
2007 Kestrel Estate Old Vine Chardonnay, Yakima Valley, $20, QPR: 4
2007 Isenhower Cellars Cabernet Franc, Columbia Valley, $29, QPR: 4
2003 Terra Blanca Estate Reserve Merlot, Red Mountain, $29, QPR: 4
2002 Kalamar Merlot, Yakima Valley, $30, QPR: 4
2004 Dussek Cabernet Sauvignon [Woodhouse Family Cellars], Rattlesnake Hills, $36, QPR: 4
2005 Northstar Merlot, Columbia Valley, $40, QPR: 3
2007 Alexandria Nicole Cellars Viognier, Horse Heaven Hills, $20, QPR: 2
2007 Hudson Shah Viognier [Woodhouse Family Cellars], Rattlesnake Hills, $37, QPR: 1

Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
2006 Red Diamond Cabernet Sauvignon, Washington State, $11, QPR: 5
2007 Snoqualmie Select Riesling, Columbia Valley, $9, QPR: 4
2007 Sagelands Riesling, Columbia Valley, $10, QPR: 4
2007 Duck Pond Cellars Pinot Grigio, Willamette Valley (OR), $10, QPR: 4
2006 Sleight of Hand Spellbinder (red blend), Columbia Valley, $19, QPR: 4
2007 Airfield Estates Bombshell Red, Yakima Valley, $20, QPR: 4
2007 Vin du Lac Les Amis Riesling Blend, Columbia Valley, $13, QPR: 3
2007 Isenhower Cellars Merlot, Columbia Valley, $19, QPR: 3
2005 Alexandria Nicole Cellars Syrah, Columbia Valley, $25, QPR: 3
2007 Chandler Reach Viognier, Yakima Valley, $18, QPR: 2
2007 Woodinville Wine Cellars Sauvignon Blanc, Red Mountain, $18, QPR: 2
2008 Maison Bleue Au Contraire Chardonnay, Yakima Valley, $22, QPR: 2
2006 Hard Row to Hoe Syrah, Columbia Valley, $28, QPR: 2
2005 Brian Carter Cellars L’Etalon (Bordeaux-style blend), Yakima Valley, $30, QPR: 2
2006 J. Bookwalter Foreshadow Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, $42, QPR: 2
2005 Hightower Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, $50, QPR: 2
2006 Five Star Cellars Merlot, Walla Walla Valley, $32, QPR: 1
2006 Hightower Merlot, Columbia Valley, $38, QPR: 1
2005 Terra Blanca ONYX (red blend), $39, QPR: 1

Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
2006 Red Diamond Merlot, Washington State, $11, QPR: NR
2006 Desert Wind “Bare Naked” Chardonnay, Columbia Valley, $12, QPR: NR
NV Kelso Red Table Wine, Columbia Valley, $13, QPR: NR
2006 Ginkgo Forest Syrah, Columbia Valley, $14, QPR: NR
2006 Revelry Chardonnay, Columbia Valley, $15, QPR: NR
2006 Revelry Merlot, Columbia Valley, $15, QPR: NR
2007 Canoe Ridge Chardonnay, Columbia Valley, $16, QPR: NR
2007 Sleight of Hand Magician Gewurztraminer, Columbia Valley, $17, QPR: NR
2007 Airfield Estates Lightning (white blend), Yakima Valley, $18, QPR: NR
2007 Fidelitas Semillon, Columbia Valley, $18, QPR: NR
2007 Ginkgo Forest Gewurztraminer, Columbia Valley, $20, QPR: NR
2008 Maison Bleue Notre Vie Viognier, Yakima Valley, $22, QPR: NR
2006 Mannina Cellars Merlot, Walla Walla Valley, $24, QPR: NR
2004 Lowden Hills Cabernet Sauvignon, Horse Heaven Hills, $25, QPR: NR
2006 Hard Row to Hoe Mis de Miner (red blend), Columbia Valley, $28, QPR: NR
2006 J. Bookwalter Foreshadow Merlot, Columbia Valley, $38, QPR: NR

Quality: 2 stars (out of 5)
2004 Duck Pond Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, Wahluke Slope, $8, QPR: NR
2006 Brian Carter Cellars Oriana (white blend), Yakima Valley, $24, QPR: NR
2006 Pleasant Hill Alegria (red blend), Columbia Valley, $24, QPR: NR
2005 Lowden Hills See You There Syrah, Walla Walla Valley, $25, QPR: NR

Our last day in South African wine country was a last minute add-on trip to the Durbanville district, an area very close to Cape Town. The area was beautiful, but the overall quality of the wines was not great. And, unfortunately, the few excellent wines that we did find are not available in the United States. But we had a great day, anyway, as is just about every day in wine country.

Our first visit of the day was at the Durbanville Hills wine farm. It was a very impressive facility that included a restaurant, beautiful views of Cape Town, and we were able to taste ten wines, two of which we rated as excellent.

The next stop was at Nitida where we ate lunch in their informal dining facility. They had good food and a friendly atmosphere.  Unfortunately, none of the five wines that we tasted in their tasting room really knocked our socks off.

After lunch we visited Meerendal, a wine farm that was established in 1702. Most of their wines were mediocre with the exception of the 2006 Shiraz. Our last stop of the day was at Hillcrest Estate where we tasted six wines. Several of their wines were decent, but none were great.

After our last day on the wine trails of South Africa, we headed back to Hout Bay for the evening where LaGayle’s cousin Brenda prepared a delicious dinner, and we opened several bottles of good South African wine that we had purchased over the past three weeks.

Please remember from my previous posts on South African wines that because we are buying wines here at South African prices based on the rand (R), we decided that it would be misleading and of little value to our core constituency of readers in the U.S. to calculate a QPR rating unless it is a wine we can buy in the U.S. and is of good enough quality to want to buy. Therefore, for the purposes of the wine reviews on this trip, I will only calculate a QPR rating on a wine which I have given a Quality rating of 4 stars (out of 5) or higher and if I can find a U.S. vendor and price on which to base the QPR calculation. Wines that meet these criteria will be set apart from the others by bold type. Otherwise I’ll denote the QPR as Not Calculated (NC) if the Quality rating is 3 stars or higher or Not Recommended (NR) if the Quality rating is less than 3 stars.

Here’s a complete listing of the wines we tasted in Durbanville:

Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
2006 Meerendal Shiraz Bin 159, R155, QPR: NC
2006 Durbanville Hills Luipardsberg Merlot, R190, QPR: NC
2006 Durbanville Hills Caapmans Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot, R190, QPR: NC

Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
2008 Durbanville Hills Chardonnay, R42, QPR: NC
2005 Durbanville Hills Shiraz-Michael Angelo Silver, R59, QPR: NC
2005 Hillcrest Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot, R70, QPR: NC
2004 Meerendal Cabernet Sauvignon, R75, QPR: NC
2008 Durbanville Hills Biesjes Craal Sauvignon Blanc, R85, QPR: NC

Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
2008 Durbanville Hills Sauvignon Blanc, R42, QPR: NC
2007 Nitida Leuco Red, R45, QPR: NC
2007 Hillcrest Unwooded Chardonnay, R45, QPR: NC
2006 Durbanville Hills Merlot, R59, QPR: NC
2007 Durbanville Hills Rhinofields Chardonnay, R75, QPR: NC
2004 Meerendal Shiraz, R80, QPR: NC
2006 Meerendal Merlot, R80, QPR: NC
2006 Hillcrest Merlot, R80, QPR: NC
2006 Nitida Calligraphy, R115, QPR: NC
2006 Meerendal Sauvignon Blanc Bin 242, R115, QPR: NC

Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
2007 Meerendal Sauvignon Blanc, R49, QPR: NR
2007 Meerendal Chardonnay, R52, QPR: NR
2008 Hillcrest Chardonnay, R55, QPR: NR
2006 Durbanville Hills Cabernet Sauvignon, R59, QPR: NR
2008 Hillcrest Sauvignon Blanc, R60, QPR: NR
2008 Durbanville Hills Rhinofields Sauvignon Blanc, R65, QPR: NR
2007 Nitida Cabernet Sauvignon, R75, QPR: NR
2007 Nitida Pinotage, R75, QPR: NR

Quality: 2 stars (out of 5)
2007 Hillcrest Sauvignon Blanc, R60, QPR: NR
2008 Nitida Sauvignon Blanc, R65, QPR: NR

Quality: 1.5 stars (out of 5)
2005 Meerendal Pinotage, R75, QPR: NR

This week’s Wine Word of the Week is resveratrol.

Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine:
Resveratrol is the phenolic compound produced by grapevines (and other plants such as peanut and eucalyptus trees), particularly in response to microbial attack or artificial agents such as ultraviolet radiation. It is one of a number of compounds (including catechin and quercetin) found in wine thought to contribute to health aspects of its moderate consumption. …. Red wines have a much higher resveratrol content, usually about ten times, than that found in whites.

Layman’s terms from Kori:
Resveratrol is a naturally occurring compound found in wine that has been shown to provide health benefits such as protection against cancer and cardiovascular disease.

If you’ve never tasted Malbec, you are really missing out. Malbec’s ties go back to Bordeaux, France, where it was originally one of the five varieties used in red Bordeaux blends along with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. Today it is only used sparingly in Bordeaux but has really come into its own as a stand-alone varietal in Argentina. In fact, there is now more Malbec planted in Argentina than anywhere else in the world. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that our own state of Washington is beginning to produce some excellent Malbec as well.

Malbec appeals to a wide variety of wine drinkers. It is not as tannic as Cabernet Sauvignon but is spicier than Merlot and goes well with a number of different foods. In addition to being a very versatile wine, Argentine Malbec in particular delivers serious bang-for-your-buck. One of our wine tasting dinners last summer featured Argentine Malbec. In that tasting, all six wines cost under $20 with the winner coming in under $10. The winner that evening was the 2006 Altas Cumbres.

One day while wine shopping, we came across the 2005 Catena Malbec and decided to buy a bottle to try. So in typical Wine Peeps fashion, we brought it home and sacked it up along with a proven favorite, the 2006 Altas Cumbres, and put them into our private tasting lineup. For a more complete description of how we set up these private tastings, please refer to How We Taste.

At one of our recent private tasting dinners, we had what turned out to be this Argentine Malbec showdown. Both wines were good. In fact, we were split two to two on which one we liked best. And while we did enjoy the Altas Cumbres again, we did not rate this particular bottle quite as high as we had in our dinner last summer. Nevertheless, at $9.99, it is still a great buy! The Catena will set you back a few more dollars but it is very enjoyable as well.

2006 Altas Cumbres Malbec (Mendoza, Argentina): Dark red and very aromatic. Dark fruits, oak, vanilla, and blackberry cobbler come through on the nose. Dark, fresh fruits and honey show through on the palate. Medium to full-bodied with medium tannins and a long finish.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Esquin (Seattle), $9.99; Triphammer Wines (New York), $9.99

2005 Catena Malbec (Mendoza, Argentina): Deep garnet. Aromas of red fruits, cotton candy, and kettle corn along with a little barnyard lead to flavors of extra ripe plums, leather, and Twizzlers. Crisp, medium to full-bodied with medium tannins and a long finish.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Pete’s Wine Shop – Eastside (Seattle area), $17; Wine.com (California), $16.79

Stellenbosch is by far the most prominent wine region in South Africa, so I wanted to go back and visit several of the wineries on my list that I had to skip when I was ill on our first visit to Stellenbosch several weeks ago.

Our first stop was at de Trafford Winery. It was so far back in the boondocks that we weren’t sure that we were even on the right road. There had been a huge brush fire in that area in the last two to three weeks that came up right to the edge of their vineyards. In fact, a few vines were scorched, and they picked those grapes and destroyed them not wanting them to be used in the wines. Once we got to the tasting room, Tremaine, our tasting room host, was very friendly and knowledgeable. De Trafford was established in 1992 and produces about 2,500 cases a year. While none of the wines that we tasted were great, our favorite was the 2006 Blueprint Shiraz. And I can’t help but wonder if we would’ve rated it higher if we had tasted from a fresh bottle.

Our next stop was at Stark-Conde Wines, which turned out to be our best visit of the day. Our host was co-owner/winemaker Jose Conde who ironically is from Independence, Missouri, USA. Jose was kind enough to spend quite a while with us explaining his winemaking philosophy, showing us their facilities and barrel room, and telling us about their vineyards and future plans. Stark-Conde was established in the late 1990’s and produces a little over 3,000 cases a year—all red wine. We rated three of the four wines we tasted at Stark-Conde as excellent, as you will see in the listing below.  Jose is also a partner in MAN Vintners, a value label widely distributed in the United States at around $8-$10 a bottle.

Our next stop was at Kanu Vineyards, an impressive facility just west of Stellenbosch. While their signs and all written advertisements for the wine farm stated that they would be open on the day that we visited until 1pm, we arrived a little before 12:30pm and they would not serve us a tasting. The tasting room supervisor was actually fairly rude and abrupt and basically had the door closed behind us as we left. We travelled a long way from the United States to visit Kanu, and their wines are widely distributed in the United States, but I guess we’ll never know whether they are any good or not after the way we were treated. It’s a shame that such a nice looking venue on the outside doesn’t live up to that image when you get there.

Our final stop of the day was at Spier, a wine farm established in the late 1600’s which has become quite an entertainment venue in addition to a wine tasting center. While the hostesses in the tasting room were nice and knowledgeable, we didn’t find the overall quality of the wines to be all that good. The two best wines we found at Spier were their 2006 Shiraz/Mourvedre/Viognier and their 2005 Private Collection Merlot.

Please remember from my previous posts on South African wines that because we are buying wines here at South African prices based on the rand (R), we decided that it would be misleading and of little value to our core constituency of readers in the U.S. to calculate a QPR rating unless it is a wine we can buy in the U.S. and is of good enough quality to want to buy. Therefore, for the purposes of the wine reviews on this trip, I will only calculate a QPR rating on a wine which I have given a Quality rating of 4 stars (out of 5) or higher and if I can find a U.S. vendor and price on which to base the QPR calculation. Wines that meet these criteria will be set apart from the others by bold type. Otherwise I’ll denote the QPR as Not Calculated (NC) if the Quality rating is 3 stars or higher or Not Recommended (NR) if the Quality rating is less than 3 stars.

Here’s a complete listing of the wines we tasted on Day 4 in Stellenbosch:

Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
2006 Stark-Conde Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon, R95, QPR: 5 [Great Corks (Connecticut), $24.99 for 2005 vintage]
2006 Stark-Conde Three Pines Syrah, R185, QPR: 3 [TheCellarOnline.com (California), $39.00]
2006 Stark-Conde Three Pines Cabernet Sauvignon, R185, QPR: NC

Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
2006 Spier Shiraz/Mourvedre/Viognier, R75, QPR: NC
2006 Stark-Conde Stellenbosch Syrah, R95, QPR: NC
2005 Spier Private Collection Merlot, R148, QPR: NC
2006 de Trafford Merlot, R150, QPR: NC
2006 de Trafford Blueprint Shiraz, R150, QPR: NC

Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
2005 Spier Malbec/Cabernet Franc/Petit Verdot, R75, QPR: NC
2008 Spier Private Collection Sauvignon Blanc, R75, QPR: NC
2006 Spier Private Collection Cabernet Sauvignon, R148, QPR: NC
2005 Spier Private Collection Shiraz, R148, QPR: NC

Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
2008 de Trafford Chenin Blanc, R120, QPR: NR
2005 Spier Private Collection Pinotage, R148, QPR: NR

Quality: 2 stars (out of 5)
2006 Spier Private Collection Chenin Blanc, R96, QPR: NR