It has been an extremely long time since I posted. I was in the midst of finishing up a course in the international wine trade and, frankly, was completely burned out on thinking about wine. Not drinking it, mind you, just thinking about it. But I've had a couple of weeks to recuperate, and I think I'm ready to give it a go.
I have such fond memories of Luigi Bosca malbec. Years ago, when my dad was traveling to South America for work, he came back raving about the wine. At the time, it was extremely hard - even impossible - to find the wine in the US. Then about 4 years ago, my parents and I went to Argentina and immersed ourselves (almost literally) in the country's wine. Aside from a nice bottle of Tikal and some wine of unknown variety or provenance that came out of a big plastic jug at a street market, the Luigi Bosca was some of the best we had. Happily, it's now widely available in the US - I even managed to find this bottle on sale!
I've been saving this bottle for a special occasion, but for some reason I've decided to open it. Part of it is that I have a ridiculous number of wines that I've been saving for a special occasion, and...I don't have any special occasions (or, more specifically, anyone to share the wines with on special occasions). I'm also opening it now because Argentinian malbecs aren't really noted for their longevity and I don't want this wine to turn the corner before I decide to open it up. And, finally, it's the 10th in what is expected to be a 12-day-long rainy spell and I'm trying to transport myself to sunnier places. Given that Mendoza gets only about 22 cm of rain (about 8 1/2 inches) a year, I think it qualifies.
The wine is the expected inky color, though it has lost some of its youthful blue hues. It's more of a garnet with just a hint of violet at the rim. The aromas are deep and almost earthy. There's a butteriness from oak, but only in the backrgound. The primary aromas are ripe red berries and forest floor, and something briary as well.
It's a touch buttery on the palate as well, but not overwhelmingly. This malbec suffers from none of the overt jammy fruits or overpowering alcohol of a number of malbecs, but is a lovely balance of fruit, tannin, acid, and heat. The finish is long and juicy. Words cannot express how badly I want a big slab of Argentinian beef at this moment. Alas, my dinner consists of a green salad with a poached egg and sweet potato. Dinner and wine are not in agreement. So I'll just finish the wine first.
Vintage: 2007
Grape: Malbec
Region: Mendoza, Argentina
Price: $16
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