The Globe in Your Glass Media Tasting

This evening in support of Canuck Place, was the Globe in Your Glass tasting, with wineries from around the world. There was also a Media component, which usually has a person telling you something about the wines for the evening, BUT this evening was different. We were presented with 15 wines (8 white and 7 red) that were poured into carafes. Our task as Media was to taste each wine and guess the winery that produced it and the varietal or blend. We did get a hint for each wine, but it was still really hard. Also, all the wines were under $20, so good value.

The wines were of course unveiled at the end and the person(s) with the most right guesses, wins. Believe it or not, yours truly guessed the most correct wines. The wines we had to guess were:
- Hardys Stamp of Australia Riesling Gewurztraminer 2008 ($10.49)
- Sumac Ridge Private Reserve Gewurztraminer 2007 ($12.99) *
- Nk-Mip Cellars Pinot Blanc 2007 ($17.01)
- Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Sauvignon Blanc 2008 ($9.99)
- Monkey Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2009 ($15.99) *
- Banrock Station Unwooded Chardonnay 2007 ($11.99)
- Jackson-Triggs Esprit VQA Chardonnay 2007 ($12.99)
- Inniskillin Okanagan Dark Horse Chardonnay 2005 ($19.99) *
- See Ya Later Ranch Unleashed Pinot Noir 2007 ($17.99) *
- Hogue Cellars Genesis Merlot 2004 ($19.99)
- Clos du Bois Merlot 2005 ($19.99)
- Barossa Valley Estates E-Minor Shiraz 2008 ($19.99)
- Hardys Chronicles "Butcher's Gold" Shiraz Sangiovese 2007 ($16.95) *
- Robert Mondavi Private Select Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 ($19.99)
- Ravenswood Vintners Blend Zinfandel 2006 ($19.99) *

The easiest for me to guess was the Monkey Bay Sauvignon Blanc, the See Ya Later Ranch Pinot Noir, and the Ravenswood Zinfandel. The toughest was the Nk'Mip Cellars Pinot Blanc and the Hardys Chronicles "Butcher's Gold" Shiraz Sangiovese.

The ones I enjoyed the most I put a "*" beside in case you are looking for a tasty wine under $20. Enjoy.

Chile Day 10 - Casa Lapostolle and Viu Manent

Chile day 10 – Casa Lapostolle Clos Apalta and Viu Manent. My first stop this morning was with Casa Lapostolle in their Clos Apalta winery. This winery was specially designed for their flagship wine “Clos Apalta”. This is a Bordeaux blend with Carmenere, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot. The winery is dedicated to organic and biodynamic vineyard practices (which I enjoy and can note that it really does make a difference in your glass), and produces some very nice wines. The Apalta region is the premium red region in Colchagua and I believe in all of Chile. In keeping with my brevity in my blog while I am on the road, I will review one white and one red wine for Casa Lapostolle, with full tasting notes when I am back in Vancouver. For the white, I enjoyed the Casa Lapostolle Sauvignon Blanc 2009 from the Rapel Valley. It had varied aromas of citrus, pineapple and apple. On the palate there was good acidity with pineapple flavour and medium length. This is the FIRST year that Casa Lapostolle has used a screw cap on this wine or any of their other wines. An elegant wine which would pair nicely with seafood. For the reds, I must talk about their Clos Apalta Limited Release 2007. I am the FIRST person in media for North America to try this vintage of Clos Apalta and feel very privileged. This wine spends it's first year aging in all new French oak barrels with each varietal in it's own barrel. In year 2, the varietals (Carmenere, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot) are blended and put back in the same barrels and aged for another year. After 2 years in barrel, the wine is bottled and then the bottle is kept in storage for a year before release. The 2007 vintage was very deep purple coloured in the glass. It had vanilla and sweet black fruit on the nose. On the palate there was vanilla, sweet black fruit, red cherries, cloves, and cinnamon flavours. The flavours came out more as I swirled the wine in my glass exposing the wine to oxygen. It would be interesting if time permitted to try this wine after one hour, four hours and 24 hours to see how the wine's aromas and flavours change. To get the full effect of the wine please decant it. The wine had a nice round mouth feel with a balance of medium tannins. It finished dry with cherry and vanilla flavours lingering on the palate for a long time.

After visiting Casa Lapostolle, my next stop for the day was the Viu Manent winery, just a short drive away. I was given a short tour of the winery, with an opportunity for a barrel sample of a Merlot and a Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by a horse drawn carriage ride through the vineyard. Malbec plays a very big part of the wines at Viu Manent with more being planted around their winery. I have enjoyed their Reserva Malbec in the past at tastings I have held with the South World Wine Society in Vancouver. It is interesting to see how they are producing Malbec very successfully, while this is the signature grape of Argentina. I sampled their Viu Manent Reserva Chardonnay 2008 from the Casablanca Valley. The wine has been released for almost a year. I was told that through the year in the bottle the wine has changed with the level of acidity decreasing, leaving the wine with an off-dry level of sweetness. This wine spent 6 months in oak barrels and as deep yellow in colour. It had a vanilla, apple, sweet and creamy nose. On the palate there was more of the vanilla, apple and creaminess. It was very soft and round in my mouth but also had a slight spiciness. For the red wine, I enjoyed the Reserva Carmenere 2008 from the Colchagua Valley. Deep purple colour in the glass. Vanilla, black fruits and a slight hint of capsicum on the nose. It was quite round in the mouth, with vanilla and ripe black fruit flavours, and a peppery finish.

I have found through discussions with various Chilean winemakers on this trip that Carmenere does tend to have a peppery finish, which is quite nice. The wine makers also suggest paring a Carmenere with spicy asian foods (e.g. Thai, Indian) as well as Mexican food.

That is all from the Colchagua Valley, Tomorrow is back to Santiago. Saludos!

Chile Day 9 - Montgras and Montes

Chile day 9 – Today was my M&M day. That is Montgras and Montes. Two premium wineries located in the Colchagua Valley in Chile. In the morning I met with Mr. Santiago Margozzini from Montgras. He led me through a tasting of their wines as well as drove me through part of their Ninquen vineyards. Most of their vines are located in the Colchagua valley, but they also have some vineyards in the Leyda and the Maipo Valley. Many of the wines I tasted I do not think are in BC yet, but may soon arrive. To keep the blog short, i'll keep my notes to one white and one red for each winery, with my full tasting notes to come when I'm back in Vancouver. From Leyda, I tried a Sauvignon Blanc and a Chardonnay. The Amaral Sauvignon Blanc 2009 is 100% stainless steel fermented. They tried to minimize oxygen content with the grapes using dry ice. The wine was only bottled one month ago, and I think i am one of the first few non Chileans to try this vintage. The wine has lots of lemon, lime and grapefruit aromas with a slight hint of greenness. On the palate it had high acidity, with more lemon, lime and grapefruit flavours. And a very long length. I tried 7 reds with Montgras. All but one came from the Colchagua Valley. The MontGras Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 was deep garnet in the glass. Vanilla, black fruit, black cherries, cassis and tarry aromas. It had lots of fruitiness on the palate, with flavours of black cherry, vanilla, cloves, and chocolate. The tannins were soft but still provided a dry finish.

The afternoon I dedicated to the Montes winery, and wine maker Mr. Aurelio Montes Jr. I had met Aurelio in Vancouver during the Wines of Chile events in September and arranged to meet him at the winery in October. Aurelio first drove me around the vineyard, pointing out the differences within the vineyard topography and how that influenced the varieties planted and how the vines were planted (e.g. training the vines, and vine density). After we toured the winery, then onto tasting his wines. Again keeping brevity, i'll only review one white and one red wine for the blog, with more to come. For the white wine, I tried the Montes Sauvignon Blanc Limited Selection 2009 from the Leyda Valley (FYI, i'm starting to really enjoy Leyda Sauv Blancs more than from other parts of Chile). This one had citrus, nettles, herbal and green chile aromas. On the palate the wine had citrus, and green chile pepper flavours. Light in body but long length. Pair with some seafood. I tried 7 red wines, but the one I will talk about is the Montes Alpha Carmenere 2007. This wine was deep purple in the glass. Capsicum, back fruit and vanilla aromas. On the palate I taste red and black cherries, vanilla and a slight hint of capsicum. This wine had a soft, round mouth feel and a long length. Pair carmenere with spicy Thai, Mexican or Indian food. I can't wait to try this back in Vancouver.

Thanks to both Santiago and Aurelio for showing me their vineyards and fine wines. Saludos!

Chile day 8 - Santａ Ｃｒｕｚ

cＨａｖｉｎｇ　ｉｎｔｅｒｎｅｔ　ｐｒｏｂｌｅｍｓ　ｈｅｒｅ　ｉｎ　Ｓａｎｔａ　Ｃｒｕｚ，　Ｃｈｉｌｅ．　　Ｓｏ　ｍａｙｂｅ　ｎｏｔ　ａｂｌｅ　ｔｏ　ｐｏｓｔ　ｍｙ　ｗｉｎｅ　ｎｅｗｓ　ｔｉｌｌ　Ｉ　ａｍ　ｂａｃｋ　ｉｎ Santiago on Wednesday. Today was a long drive from Santiago. Stopped in Rancagua. Ate empanada and bought fresh strawberries.　Ｄｉｎｎｅｒ　ｗａｓ　ｓｔｅａｋ　ｗｉｔｈ　Ｄｏｎａ　Ｄｏｍｉｎｇａ　Ｃａｂｅｒｎｅｔ　２００８．　　Ｌｏｔｓ　ｏｆ　ｔａｒ，　ｖａｎｉｌｌａ，　ａｎｄ　ｂｌａｃｋ　ｆｒｕｉｔ　ｏｎ　ｔｈｅ　ｎｏｓｅ　ａｎｄ　ｐａｌａｔｅ．　　Ｖｅｒｙ　ｓｍｏｏｔｈ．　Ｃｉａｏ　ｆｒｏｍ　Ｓａｎｔａ　Ｃｒｕｚ．　　Ｎｅｘｔ　ｎｏｔｅｓ　ｆｒｏｍ　Ｓａｎｔｉａｇｏ！　　Ｓａｌｕｄｏｓ！

Chile Day 7 - Maipo Valley

Chile Day 7, Half way through my visit to Chile and the wineries I planned to visit. Today I visited 3 wineries spread across the Maipo Valley, south of Santiago. The first winery of the day was Santa Rita. I've met two of Santa Rita's wine makers in the past through their visits to Vancouver, and now it is my turn to see the winery. Mr. Jose Ignacio Villalobo gave me a tour of their winery as well as pointing out the historical sites that are within the winery. One of the lines of wine is the “120” series. I'll write about it when i'm back in Vancouver, but if you are interested, please check out Santa Rita's website, www.santarita.cl. Mr. Villalobo had selected 5 wines for me to taste: 2 Sauvignon Blanc, 1 Carmenere, and 2 cabernet sauvignon. These wines were from their entry to to their premium levels. Although i can't take you through all wines from all 3 wineries in this brief blog, i'll point out a few wines. The Santa Rita Casablanca Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2008 had a mix of asparagus and citrus on the nose. Medium acidity, with more asparagus flavour as well as some herbaceousness and citrus. The wine had medium body and a bit of roundness. For a red, I'll point out the Santa Rita Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva 2007. This one was deep garnet in colour, with cassis, back cherry and a hint of vanilla on the nose. Lots of black cherry flavour, with a bit of meatiness. The tannins were medium and allowed for a smooth mouthfeel. Nice.

The second winery of the day was Vina Undurraga. Their grounds and winery were beautiful, just like Santa Rita. I'd love to just spend a day at each on their grounds enjoying the sites. At Undurraga I met with a wine maker named Pilar. She led me through a tasting of 5 different wines; 2 whites, 2 reds, and 1 sparkling. I found out that Undurraga has a range of sparkling wines. Hopefully we will get them in BC sometime soon. A white from Undurraga was the Sibaris Sauvignon Blanc 2008 from the cool climate, Leyda Valley. This wine was light lemon in colour. It had a sweet and saliness to the nose with lemon and a herbal note. It was quite high in acidity making it quite refreshing. I tasted green fruit, herbaceousness and some lemon. it had a long length with a spicy finish. On the red wine side, I enjoyed the Sibaris Carmenere, 2008 from the Colchagua Valley. This wine spent 23 months barrel aging in French and American oak. It was deep purple in the glass with good legs. It had tarry, meaty, cassis ad a bit of capsicum aromas. On the palate there as tar, vanilla and black cherry. It was quite smooth in the mouth with a slight peppery and dark fruit finish.

The third winery of the day was from Vina Tarapaca ex Zavala. This winery was a bit out of the way but well worth it. It has 8 km of private road that leads you to the winery. You drive through their vineyards along the side of the valley overlooking I think the Maipo River. Once there, there is beautiful grounds, and a private airstrip! Mr. Edward Flaherty, winemaker, led me through the tastings of his wines. Edward is originally from California, but has been living in Chile for many years. A white wine I enjoyed was the La Isla Sauvignon Blanc 2009 from the Leyda Valley. This wine ha a herbal nose with some green pepper, some floweriness and some lime. It had a ice round mouthfeel which was balanced with medium acidity in the glass. Green pepper and herbal flavours, with a long length. For the reds, I enjoyed the Gran Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 from the Maipo Valley. This wine was deep garnet in colour. very aromatic. Tar, ripe black fruit and cassis aromas. On the palate, there was tar, cassis, and black cherry. The tannins were medium, leading to a dry, sweet ripe black fruit finish. Very tasty.

That is all from the Maipo Valley. I'll provide full tasting notes for all the wines once i'm back in Vancouver. The next valley for me to visit is the Colchagua Valley. Saludos!

Chile day 6 - Errazuriz

Chile Day 6. Today I visited one of the largest wineries in Chile, Errazuriz. Errazuriz is located in the Aconcagua Valley, north of Santiago. I was first met by Mr. Pedro Olivia Farias in Public Relations who showed me part of the vineyard, plus their winery processing facilities. It was very informative. Pedro showed me the upgrades that Errazuriz has done to the winery, and changes upcoming to make it more sustainable. Gravity fed, using thermal heating from the ground, natural lighting and more. He also provided me a brief history of the Errazuriz winery, which started in the late 1880's up to today. Today the winery is completely owned by 4 family members. He also described to me the different wineries owned by Errazuriz, which include Arboleda, Sena, and Caliterra, and the different emphasis of each winery. I found out that Canada is the 2nd largest market to Errazuriz, behind the UK. That was quite amazing.

After the tour by Pedro, I was handed over to winemaker, Mr. Rodrigo Zamorano. Rodrigo spent a lot of time with me and went into much depth about the Aconcagua Valley and each of the 9 different wines we sampled together. Errazuriz is the largest winery in the Aconcagua Valley and is the only valley to have a continuous valley up to the Andes. This allows the coastal fogs to reach far in land moderating the temperatures in the Aconcagua Valley. He also mentioned that they started a new vineyard area called Manzanar near the coast in the Aconcagua Valley where they are trying white varietals plus pinot noir. They are just starting to produce wines from this area so time will tell which varietals produce the wines up to their standards.

As i mentioned, I tried 8 different wines, from the Estate Level, Reserve Level, and their top level wine, Don Maximiano Founder's Reserve. To keep this blog brief, I will tell you about one white and one red I enjoyed, and then provide the full tastings notes when i am back in Canada. For the white wine, I enjoyed their 2007 Wild Ferment Chardonnay from the Casablanca Valley. This is a 100% barrel fermented wine, using all French oak. One third of the wine went through malolactic fermentation to provide a more round mouthfeel and butteriness. I've tried this wine in the past in Vancouver, and enjoyed it this time with the wine maker Rodrigo. The wine had lots of vanilla, caramel and tropical fruit on the nose. Very aromatic. Full bodied, with tropical fruit and vanilla flavours. Very smooth, but still had some acid to balance it. It had a long length with a spicy finish. Rodrigo suggested aging it for a year to integrate more in the bottle, but I thought it was fine already.

For the red wine, I enjoyed the 2007 Max Reserva Carmenere from the Aconcagua Valley. This wine spent 12 months oak aging. 2007 is the first vintage for the vines selected for this wine. It had a deep purple color in the glass. Cassis, smoke, black cherry, and oak on the nose. Black cherries, vanilla and cassis flavours. Smooth tannins. It had a long length, with a spice and red cherry finish. Highly recommended.

That is all for now. Tomorrow is visiting the Maipo Valley. Three wineries in one day. Should be a big day. Saludos!

Chile day 2 - Valparaiso

Chile Day 5. Valparaiso. Today was a day of up and downs, that is from riding on funciulars along the steep slopes of Valparaiso. This is an interesting coastal city. The upper hills have many small B&B, restaurants and art galleries. Many of the walls along the narrow cobbled streets are painted with murals. For those wondering what a funicular is, it can best be described as an outside elevator, that has a track and cable going up the side of a steep hillside. The funiculars in Valparaiso are built between 1893 and 1915. The “cars” are built of wood and does take some faith that they are in good condition for riding. But they run daily several times every hour as the cars get full. It is an interesting experience.

Today beside going up and down the hillsides, I did have a chance to try more Chilean wine. This evening with dinner I ordered a bottle of Dona Dominga Carmenere 2008. This wine is from San Fernando, in the Colchagua Valley south of Santiago. This wine was very purple coloured, and looked very much like Malbec. On the nose, there was leather, tar and herbal notes. It was very round in the mouth, with juicy black fruit and plum flavours. There was a bit of spice as well. I paired this with grilled lamb chops that came with a creamy green pepper sauce and mashed potatoes. Another nice pairing.

Tomorrow i will visit the Errazuriz winery and time permitting, another winery nearby. That's all for now. Saludos!v

Chile Day 4 - Casas del Bosque

Chile day 4. Today was my first day of official wine tasting at a winery here in Chile. My visit was to the Casas del Bosque winery. It is about a 1.5 hr ride from Santiago to Casas del Bosque. We left with semi-sunny skies around Santiago until we passed through a tunnel that on the other side was the start of the Casablanca Valley. We immediately hit the coastal fog which is famous for the valley. I met with a very informative lady named Judith Ramirez Aquirre. Judith took me through some of the vines surrounding the winery. As it is spring here in Chile, there are no berries yet. The vines have started to sprout leaves and some have the buds for the grapes which have yet to bloom. Grape vines i am told bloom in November in Chile. That there are buds now is surprising to the people at the winery. They mentioned that it was the Pinot Noir vines that were 3 weeks advanced. There was also chardonnay and sauvignon blanc vines around which were still with very small leaves forming. After walking through the vines, we viewed the crushing area, the stainless steel fermentation vats, the oak barrel aging room, and the bottling line, before we moved to the Tasting Room. Judith led me through a tasting of 8 wines. We started with Sauvignon Blanc, then to Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and a red blend. All the grapes are from the Casablanca Valley, except for the Cab, which was from the Rapel Valley. Although I do not have time to go through all the wines today, I'll point out a few, and then when i'm back in Canada, i'll provide all my tasting notes on www.mywinepal.com. One wine of note was the 2009 Casas del Bosque Sauvignon Blanc Reserva (unbelievable being a 2009 vintage, while the Okanagan is still harvesting grapes). This is made very much in a New World (New Zealand) style. This one was pale lemon with a green tint. Lots of gooseberry and herbal on the nose, and a bit of celery. Good acidity, with gooseberry, herbal, celery and green apple flavours. Pair with some oysters on the half shell or lightly cooked fish for a nice complement. On the red wine side, I will make note of the 2008 Casas del Bosque Pinot Noir Gran Reserva. This wine spent 9 months in french oak. They like to use 2-3 year French oak barrels as much as possible for all their barrel aged wines so the oak is there, but not in your face. This one had a wide range of aromas. Strawberry, oak, red cherry, dill and mushroom at first, but then some vanilla on the nose. The wine was quite fruity. Lots of red cherry, but also some dill and vanilla. Quite smooth, medium length, and a dry finish. I'd try this with grilled salmon, or pan fried chicken breast with vegetables and herbs. That is all for now. I'm in Valparaiso enjoying the views of this UNESCO World heritage site. Saludos.

Chile Day 3 - Cerro San Cristobol

Today was touring of the trendy Bellavista neighbourhood and then take the funicular train up the Cerro San Cristobal to get panoramic view of the city, a peek at the Andes mountains and the large Virgin Mary statue overlooking the city. If you are looking for handicrafts and/or lapis lazuli jewelry, then Bellavista is a good place to look. Lunch time is good for fixed price menus for a reasonable price. This lunch it was a carrot fritatta type appetizer, followed by salmon topped with asparagus and cream sauce with mashed potatoes mixed with avocado and sausage, followed by a mango/chocolate mousse, and a Cristal beer. It should have been a nap after that big lunch, but I had to get up the funicular as it was a beautiful sunny day today. Dinner of course had wine. For dinner today it was pizza. I had the “portofino” pizza which had ground beef, chopped mushrooms, chopped heart of palm, and kernels of corn. Quite tasty. Maybe a new flavour for Panagopolus? What was the wine? I tried the Botalcura El Delirio Reserva. This is a Syrah / Malbec blend. I chose this specifically because Malbec is typically grown in Argentina, not Chile. This was a big wine, opaque purple in the glass. Ripe black fruit and tar nose but then opened up to show some oak, and further in the meal, chocolate, vanilla and black cherry. I attribute this wide range of aromas to be from the Malbec grape as i've tried many other malbecs and the wines continually evolve in your glass. Very nice. On the palate, it was ripe black fruit, ripe plums with medium spice and soft tannins. Tomorrow is my first official visit at a winery. Which one? Stay tuned for tomorrow's blog entry.

Chile - Day 2

Day 2 in Chile. Sunday is a day for families in Chile. Many go out to parks or restaurants. Took the subway from the Providencia neighbourhood to the Plaza de Armas, a central plaza downtown. Many street vendors in the surrounding streets selling books, scarfs, candies and more, Just north of the plaza is the Central Mercado which is a large building filled with fish mongers and seafood restaurants. I enjoyed a grilled conger eel with Kunstmann beer (sorry not wine). I did save wine for dinner. A small German style restaurant close to the hotel, serving traditional Chilean food and wine, of course. Dinner was Carne Mechada with french fries. The Atkins diet is in full force in Chile. Lots of protein everywhere for dinner. The carne was two thick slices of marinated slow roasted super tender beef brisket. To this I paired a Cousino Macul Don Luis Cabernet Sauvignon 2008. This wine was deep purple in the glass, Earthy, plum and leather nose. Lots of spice, tar black fruit, cassis flavours. Round mouthfeel with medium tannins. A very nice pairing. And served in a half bottle. All restaurants that i've visited so far offer a number of half bottles. They are a nice size for a meal for 1 or 2 people. it would be nice if more half bottles were available on restaurant lists in Vancouver. Tomorrow is a national holiday in Chile, so i'm hoping there are a few restaurants nearby. Saludos.

Chile Day 1

Day 1 in Santiago Chile. Landing in Santiago and getting through Customs was a breeze. Being able to speak a bit of Spanish helps though. Checking into the Hotel Orly around noon, and it is time for lunch. Lunch today was a Chilean style hotdog, which they add in their “Completo”, sauerkraut and avocado. Quite tasty. At 5pm a local snack of empanada pino, which is a small baked bread filled with ground meat, egg, and olives. That left me with enough energy to wait till early dinner at 8pm at “La Liguria” on Manuel Montt Street. My friend Alejandro recommended this restaurant to me, and the food was very good. My wife and I shared a grilled slice of Corvina fish, a lomo (beef) steak, Chilean salad (peeled tomatoes, sliced onions, cilantro, chile, and vinegar. And of course some wine for this dinner. My wine for the evening as a Terranoble Reserve Carmenere. Carmenere is of course the signature red grape of Chile. This wine was deep purple in the glass, very ripe fruit nose and very fruity with soft tannins, and not a hint of capsicum aroma or flavour. It went very nicely with dinner. Stay tuned for tomorrow's adventures in Chile! Saludos!

Celebrate Argentina Wines 2009

Having both the Wines of Chile and the Wines of Argentina in the same week have been taxing, but very fulfilling. I tried many new wines from many new wineries this week, and I look forward to seeing these new wines in our government and private wine shops. On this post I focus on the Argentina event.

Argentina has been making wines over the last 300 years, with most of the consumption within the country. Over the past 20 years exports of Argentinean wine has grown. Canada is now starting to get many more Argentinean wines.

For this tasting, there was of course many bottles of Malbec to taste, but also now a wide range of other varietals such as Semillon, Pinot Noir, Torrontes (the signature white grape of Argentina) and Petit Verdot! I was particularly suprised to see the Pinot Noir as it is such a finicky grape and loves cool climate, while the major wine region of Argentina, Mendoza, is quite hot and Malbec thrives there. I also enjoyed watching the Argentinean tango being danced at the event.

So what were some of the highlight wines that I came across at this evening's event?

- Urraca Chardonnay 2008. This wine had a nice oaky, earthy nose. Round in the mouth with nice lemon flavour and a long finish. Not overly oaked. This winery needs an agent so we can see their wines.
- Juana del Sol Chardonnay 2009. This wine has understated elegance. Pale lemon in colour with a light oak nose. Round. Vanilla and stone fruit flavours. They also need an agent.
- Sur de los Andes Torrontes 2008. Medium lemon coloured. Light pine needle aroma. FULL flavour. Pine needles and apples with a grapefruit finish. Maybe try instead of a Sauvignon Blanc sometime.
- Filus Reserva Malbec 2007. Deep purple in the glass. Ripe sweet red fruit with cherry liquor flavours. Vanilla, red fruit and plum on the nose. Tannic finish, but not unpleasant. This winery needs an agent.
- Aconcagua Malbec 2008. Deep purple coloured. Very aromatic. Smoky, herbal, cherry aromas. Smoky, earthy and dark fruit flavours with a cherry finish. Nice round mouth feel. One of my favorites, and should be around $15 when it comes to BC.
- Sottano Cabernet Sauvignon 2006. Medium garnet in the glass. Classic cassis nose. Cassis and cherry on the palate. Lots of fruit flavour and low tannins.

There is a peek at a few of the wines of the evening. There were many more, and I'll be posting them on www.mywinepal.com in the Wine Reviews section. Keep your eyes open for these wines coming soon to BC. Salud!