AnuvaBlog

It is always a pleasure to sit down with someone who makes such intelligent comments about the business of wine, winemaking, wine sales and so forth. That was my conversation today with Hernan Cortegoso of Bodega Serrera. They make a killer Torrontes that I wrote about a little while ago along with a lovely Malbec and Bonarda in their medium price range, and a fantastic Gran Guarda Malbec that is a spectacular concoction of layers of chocolate, ripe black cherry, clove, tobacco and a hint of pepper on the finish. Lovely and long this wine has a 10 year life expectancy and just keeps getting better.

With 3 different “fincas” (small farm: it can refer to any small agricultural operation) amounting to about 100 hectares of planted vineyard, Cortegoso–who is also an agricultural engineer–spends most of his time tending to the vines. This is where the true winemaking is done, he says.

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Back to the topic of wine from Argentina: They say that the best Torrontes comes from Salta followed by Torrontes from La Rioja (Argentina of course) and San Juan. They are respectively known as Torrontes Salteno, Riojano, and San Juanino.

The reason that these 3 regions supposedly always make better Torrontes is that they have very high altitude, Salta having the highest altitude vineyards in the world.

But we found an exquisite Torrontes from Mendoza that is from the Serrera winery. With a bouquet of fresh jasmin and orange blossom and a hint of honey, I almost don’t even need to drink this wine. Almost. In the mouth, nice acidity combines with flavors of white peach, pineapple and other citrus flavors with a lengthy finish that has floral nuances.

The best food combinations are the following:

1. Fig jam or apricot jam on brie cheese.

2. Sushi and sashimi.

3. Orange, Peach, Raspberry and Mango sorbet.

4. Salads with pears and goat cheese.

Enjoy!

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Torrontés: the Next Malbec

                Since 2004 no other country has seen the meteoric rise in volume, value and market share figures that Argentina has in the import segment of fine wine to the U.S. Over the last two years while all other segments of imported wine are down in both value and volume—except for Argentina’s across the Andes rival—Argentina has seen value increase in 2008 by 26.6% (U$ 500m) and volume by 15.6% (18.1m 9L cases), and through 3Q 09 value is up 8.8% and volume 8.9%. (It’s important to note that over 50% of all wine sales in the U.S. are done in 4Q of any year due to the Holidays)

                The majority of the reason for this growth during a recessed world economy is due to the great value that is Malbec. But of recent, Argentina’s ace in the hole has been its little known white wine called Torrontés (pronounced tohr-own-TAYS).  Torrontés, a grape variety of Spanish origin has found a home in the arid high altitudes of Salta, La Rioja and San Juan. The dryness and altitude factors enable Torrontés to achieve its best expression while maintaining its acidity, something that it loses at lower altitudes and with too much rain. When achieving its fullest personality a Salteño (from Salta) Torrontés—widely considered to be the best region—such as one from Carinae Vinos, will have an exuberant nose of honeyed orange blossom, jasmine and citrus while the mouth remains dry and crisp with flavors of pineapple, grapefruit, apricot and tropical fruits. This Salteño version is contrasted only slightly by its Riojano (see Aguijón de Abeja) and San Juanino (see Serrera Torrontés) counterparts that exhibit more delicacy and elegance. All Torrontés pair extremely well with light pastas, fishes and salads. For specific pairings try a nice apricot or fig jam over triple cream brie; prosciutto wrapped honey dew or cantaloupe; or peach, raspberry or mango sorbet with lightly flavored biscotti.  

It is this humble author’s opinion that this unique flavor profile of Torrontés combined with the newness factor that will ultimately be responsible for its growth in the U.S. and world markets over the next decade. Compared with the overly ubiquitous (yes, I just used those two words together) Chardonnay that has led to an ABC (“Anything But Chardonnay”) philosophy amongst many an aficionado, slightly fatty Viognier or off-dry Gewurztraminer—the three varieties that Torrontés is most often likened to—Torrontés has the sweet floral nose of the latter two that Chard lacks, better acidity that Viognier, and is dryer and more food friendly than Gerwurztraminar while generally being a better bang for your buck than any of the three.  This flavor profile and price point translate to sales potential.

 In the first nine months of 2009, exports for this varietal have grown 42% in value and 40% in volume.  At Anuva’s own wine tastings in the U.S. and here in Buenos Aires our wines that most frequently get a “I’ve never tried anything like that” response is Torrontés. Interestingly, the next most likely wine to get a response like that is our Bonardas.

What is Bonarda? Where Malbec is peaking and Torrontés is on its way up, Bonarda is still completely off the map. Think a nice smokey-chocolate nose with hints of raisin and fig. In the mouth, juicy blueberries and hints of pepper with an aggressive mouthfeel. This is the varietal that most often gets “wows” from wine professionals at our wine tastings. It blows away the normal flavor profile of a deep colored, full bodied red. Mairena Bonarda has been one that gets great reviews from critics and neophytes alike. Look for Bonarda to start selling well in the next 2-3 years.  

At the highest altitude vineyards in the world (upwards of 6000 ft or 2000m), the theme usually revolves around Torrontés. This variety, although originally Spanish, expresses itself best here with an abundant honeyed floral aroma and crisp citric mouth. The altitude is the key for Torrontés as with altitude comes a greater diurnal temperature differential–sometimes as great as 20 degrees C (or 35 F)–which preserves acidity in this uniquely luscious white. Torrontés also can come from La Rioja and San Juan in Argentina but they tend to be a bit more delicate.

Now Malbec from Salta has a great reputation although I find it to be quite medicinal at times. Bodegas Tacuil would have to be among my favorites from the region because of their adherence to little or no oak policies and an ability to preserve the fruit of this high desert red.

So what else can you get from Salta? Well besides minerals and llama clothing you can get Tannat. The originally French varietal derives its name from the word tannin and can sometimes can be a brutal as a Mike Tyson uppercut (from the pre Buster Douglas era of course). With time though, some goregous thorny blackberry can show through in Tannat and really be quite a nice change of pace.

Lourdes, my wife and integral part of the Anuva team is currently in Salta sourcing from many wineries. New additions to come…

 Dearest Anuva Fans,

The following email recently came our way:

“I was watching an episode of Wine Library TV. Gary, the host mentioned that he thought one of the featured wines would go well with guacamole.

 Obviously this would depend on what type of guacamole you are using, but I think a wine pairing with guacamole would be very interesting, especially on salty corn chips , and if the guacamole has to heat to it. Avocado to me offers an interesting pairing opportunity because it does not have the taste nor toughness of meat, but shares the fat content. Do you think I should be thinking of pairing Avocado as I would pair a creamy vegetable dish?”

First off I am a fan of WLTV as well. Vaynerchuck offers some great unconventional descriptions and features wines from all over the world and from every price range. He has done several shows featuring wines from Argentina; including a shows on Torrontes and Bonarda. I particularly loved the recent episode “Pairing Wine with Bacon”.

Second I agree that the pairing would depend greatly on how the avocado is prepared. However I think the avocado has a creamy smooth mellow taste, but can be very different from creamed vegetables. (The expression “creamed vegetables” always conjures an image, for me, of Daffy Duck or Yosemite Sam attempting to “cream” a vegetable and the obvious physical jokes that can be played there).

 For a zesty guacamole I would imagine either a nice crisp white like Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris. However for simply an avocado puree on toasted French bread I would select a fuller bodied Semillion. I think the honey floral notes and round mouth feel would only enhance the mellow creaminess of the fruit.

At the same time one of Argentina’s favorite avocado salad’s (ensalada de palta) is just tomato, avocado with lots of lemon juice and salt. This I could see going well with Torrontés even as it has a floral and citric quality to it that would compliment.

If I had to go red I would pick a Pinot Noir for simple lightly salted avocado. I think the soft earthy qualities of the avocado and the wine would compliment each other well. For something with a little more kick I imagine a big Syrah or Tempranillo; a fruity wine that could stand up to heavy seasoning and maybe a little acidity for the avocado to tame.

In recent weeks, I have been astounded by the impact that food has on wine and that wine has on food. On the airplane ride back to Buenos Aires, I was lucky enough to sit in business class where there were 6 wines on the menu, none of which I had tried. Port never tasted so good as when I had it with a simple scoop of chocolate ice cream. The Pinot Noir complimented the salmon quite well, but nothing really burst. The Chablis, while really remarkable on its own, didn’t really go well with the green bean and tomato salad.

And so while the general theme of food combining is like with like, one never really knows what exact food will make a wine pop, or what exact wine will make a food pop. Looking for the pop is a new found passion of mine because not only do I find it extremely pleasurable to experience citrus burst when combining a celery-fennel-grapefruit confiture salad with Anecon Torrontés, I find the hunt for and discussion about the possibilities fascinating.

We are going to be doing several internal food and wine combining tastings to determine what exactly will work with our foods best. And I mean exactly. Not “red meat” or “aged cheese”. I want to be able to say “braised pork belly with 78% dark chocolate mole over cornmeal spaeztle” (we served this with the Cavagnaro Malbec at one of our internal tastings and I nearly fainted it was so good). That is what makes me excited about what I do these days, the search for perfection. And the oohs and ahhs and empty plates at the end of the correct combination.

Stay tuned, dear readers, for more on this subject in the coming months.

Well, in a down economy it seems like wine tastings are the way to go. Anuva has done no less than 60 tastings in the last 75 days (all this with our 3 man team) featuring our collections of malbec, torrontes, and bonarda.

It seems like Anuva and Argentina are in line with the trend for the “value” wine purchasing that so many have headed toward in the last quarter of 2008. Wine connoisseur, enthusiast, novice and newcomer have all appreciated our wines and our service and I am proud to say that we had an excellent 2008.

Walking into The Beaumont on 150th last night, I felt at ease with the marble inlay and incredible decor of this gorgeous apartment building. My comfort and Janis’s wonderful ability to host (and project her voice) made this evening quite wonderful and enjoyable for all comers.

Although we did have a sock lady with lights on her ankles leave without trying any wine. Hmm. I got over that in about 3 seconds though, as we did have so many that were really appreciative.

Thankfully, we got an extra hour of sleep too.

Thanks Akasha and Kelly so much for having us over.

It was a birthday party atmosphere last night with much discussion about how we select our wines and how we import them.  Anecon Torrontés seemed to be the early favorite but it was surpassed by Mudai Pinot Noir and the Don Juan Reserve.

We sang happy birthday toward the end as I quickly though over the idea of wine pairings with the cupcakes that were present. What goes with pink frosting over vanilla cake?

Many thanks to Matt and Tatiana for organizing this event in their lovely home.

Lourdes was especially excited to have an even closer view of the Empire State Building which glowed red last night.

We had a full menu to go with the usual smattering of Torrontés, Bonarda, Malbec and other wines. Especially popular was the Mudai Pinot Noir. We found some great cheese combinations with the Bonarda especially. Combining the Bonarda with the brie we decided–after a supremely intellectual discussion of the subject of food/wine combining (”Eat what tastes good”)–brought out a decidedly pronounced black cherry flavor on the palate. A wonderful experience.

Equally wonderful was the dark chocolate with the Don Juan Reserve blend.

All the great food combining brought up the subject of biodynamic wines. We almost got Kelly to show us his biodynamic wine dance that evening, which apparently he may be taking off-Broadway shortly. He declined to comment how far off-Broadway.