LCBO Sale Wine of the Week: October 13

Catena 2014 Malbec (Mendoza, Argentina)

Sale $17.95, Regular $19.95
Discount (until Nov. 6): $2.00
LCBO #478727| | 750 mL bottle

Tastes like: Juicy and silky black and blue berries layered over a soft texture. A compelling wine.
Pairs with: Robust, earthy, pungent dishes: grilled meats, sausages, mushroom sauces, mild curries, stir fries, ribs — you want those umami flavours.
Good for: Hockey Night in Canada. Score!
Alcohol: 13.5%
Drink: Now to 2017.

Why we're drinking this
The Malbec grape may have crested a wave of hipster popularity, but it’s still a hot little number. Thankfully, the overly bold and meaty, super-wooded styles are falling back a bit, and making way for styles — like this one — that are a little cleaner and juicy-fresh. Malbec makes for a lovely fall-winter wine, as it’s usually robust, fruity, earthy and warming (14%-plus alcohol will do that). Pretty much everything you want for curling up by the fire, or fireplace channel. Catena’s latest vintage is a very nice rendering — one of the juiciest we’ve tasted over the past couple of years. And 2014 was a good vintage for reds. The grapes come from their high-altitude vineyards in the foothills of the Andes.

Tasting note
A deeply coloured wine, with thick slow tears coating the glass. The nose is pretty and floral, and meaty. Scents of black fruit and berries, kirsch and chocolate, with some black olives and mint. Some sweet funk, damp earth and cigar box. Dry, mid-full bodied, with juicy acidity and warming but not hot alcohol. All the fruit is there on the palate along with some warm oak toast and vanilla. Lovely finish, just a bit coarse. This is a nice drink on its own, or pair with big rustic foods with grill marks.

Find it at your LCBO
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This week's selection by kwäf Taste Bud Dick Snyder