Blind Wine Tasting with Achaval-Ferrer

During Winestudio in May we had a blind tasting. #Winestudio is an educational program I participate in via twitter 9pm on Tuesday evenings.  Wow this is going to be interesting I thought and two bottles arrived at my door in an Achaval-Ferrer bag. I thought, do I look inside the bag?  How will we know which wine to try first? How on earth are we going to do this. This is really going to test my taste buds. By the way, I didn’t have to peek, Paul did that and saw that the bottles were wrapped.

I’ve never participated in a blind tasting.  The closest I’ve come is to judge a wine competition. Wine competitions are done blind tasting but you usually know what grape you are tasting or if it’s a blend. You are looking to see if there are any faults. Here we only knew that it was from Achaval-Ferrer, it was red and from Argentina. The rest was up to us to identify, this was no competition, we had to guess what is in the bottle. We were given tools, the WSET Level 3 Systematic Approach to Wine Tasting Grid and told once we opened the bottles, the corks will identify the wines by the year stamped on them.



I invited my friend Jen over so she could experience a blind wine tasting with me, after all it’s no fun to drink alone. I’m really not drinking alone, but with all my friends on twitter, but it’s nice to have in person company. Before I go into my findings of the blind tasting, I thought I’d share with you some of my fellow wine friends comments during this blind tasting just to give you an idea what chatter that takes place on twitter. I consider all these people my dear friends, even though some of them I have yet to meet.

The one thing we were told is that the corks will identify what to try first.  One cork was vintage 2012 and the other vintage 2013.

Kathy-Virginia_Made @Virginia_Made
My exact thought. I got the fragrance of lavender. Immediately called out Cab Franc to me. A blend?
Vino-Sphere @vino_sphere
Wife removed the corks so I'm fully blind
William Pollard Jr @wild4wawine
12 Drink or hold, with potential to improve in cellar #winestudio 13 hold, still developing
Lori & Michael @Dracaenawines
@winestudioTINA @AchavalFerrerUS I'm going with a blend- yeah, I know that is going out on a limb. Still leaning toward a CS
Dezel Quillen @myvinespot
Not sure what '13 is (would say Malbec); we think the '12 is Quimera -- we've had it numerous times in the past

Here are our findings with the 2012 bottle:

Color: Dark almost black in color. Very deep purple.
Nose: clean and aromatic, pronounced
Palate: dry, medium acidity,  medium + tannins, medium+ alcohol, medium body, medium flavor intensity and a long finish.
Conclusion: Can drink now but has potential for ageing
Flavor profile describing the aroma and flavors
Nose: Black currant, licorice, black raspberry, floral - frezia
Palate: black current, black plum, fig, bold tannins, long finish black pepper

2013 Bottle:
Color: Ruby with magenta hues, medium intensity
Nose: clean with medium intensity
Plate: dry, medium acidity, medium+ acidity, medium alcohol, medium body, medium+ flavor intensity with a medium+ finish
Conclusion: Can drink now but will age
Flavor profile describing the aroma and flavors
Nose: black currant, earth eucalyptus, black cherry, black berry
Palate: black cherry, cola, woodsy, very juicy, black peppercorns, with a nice black pepper finish

What is in the bottles?

Drum roll please! 2012 Quimera and 2013 Quimera both of which are blends of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot.  Both vintages were made with the exact same percentages 50% Malbec, 24% Cabernet Franc, 16% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Petit Verdot.  Even though both wines were made with the exact same percentages, the growing season were very different.  The 2013 season was drier and warmer, hence the fruiter taste, while the 2012 was cooler with more rain.

Doing a blind tasting was fun.  Kudos to the PR folks at Gregory White PR who took the time to really wrap those bottles and make it truly a fun event. Corks off to them!

Try your own blind wine tasting at home.  Let me know what you learn. - Cheers

It's not all about Malbec: The Two Cabs or Achaval-Ferrer

When I think if wines from Argentina I automatically think Malbec as probably you do. Today, Argentina produces more than Malbec, like Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, the two Cabs. Last month during our #winestudio session we got introduced to Achaval-Ferrer’s Cabernet Sauvignon and their first release of Cabernet Franc. Now Cabernet Franc has always been in their portfolio, but used in the blending of their Quimera. This is their first stand alone Cabernet Franc.

Once again I want to bring into light that not all Cabs or any wines taste the same, but similar. Yes even though they are the same grape, where it’s grown, the growing season, the soil, the weather all come into play on what you taste and smell. When you taste a Cabernet Franc from Cahors, France; Napa,California and Mendoza, Argentina they will taste similar, but yet different. And it’s that difference that you learn to love about the grape and the region it’s grown in.

Cab Franc is one of my favorite wines and I tend to prefer the cool climate Cab Francs and Argentina falls into the cool climate because of the altitudes the grapes are grown in. This 2015 Achaval-Ferrer Cabernet Franc is grown in the Uco Valley at an altitude of 3,280 feet with 2,600 plants per acre. The Cab Franc comes from a special block in the Finca Diamante vineyard. The soil is sandy-gravelly with some volcanic ash. The wine was fermented in cement tanks with extensive pumping over for better extraction of flavor and color. It then aged for 10 months in 3 year old French oak barrels. The first initial notes coming from the glass were red cherry, tobacco and violets. The palate was full of black raspberry, black cherry,sharp tannins a hint of forest floor and that black pepper on the finish. As the wine opens some chocolate notes appear. This is a great cigar wine. This wine is very well done and a fantastic first vintage for Achaval-Ferrer. When I asked Gustavo Rearte, their winemaker if they plan on planting more Cab Franc he said they want to perfect and understand growing Cabernet Franc at higher elevations so it can benefit the variety. This production will only get better! SRP $24.99

The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon comes from two appellations in Mendoza, the Agrelo and Medrano.Each of these appellations contribute different attributes to the wine. The Agrelo appellation is at an altitude of 3,608 feet with 2,800 plants per acre. Agrelo is a unique place with clay soil and brings elegance and smoothness to the wine. The Medrano appellation has sandy soil, a bit warmer climate at 2,297 feet altitude. This contributes to the structure and acidity in the wine. Tasting notes, I found aromas of black cherry, coffee, cedar, black currant and a hint of juniper. On the palate Ripe blackberry, plum, black cherry, clove followed by smooth tannins and a nice finish. SRP $24.99

Achaval-Ferrer’s philosophy is to let the flavors and fruit of Argentina shine through and they certainly do with these wine. I would not hesitate choosing any of their wines in the wine shop or at a restaurant.

Food Pairings:

2015 Cabernet Franc - Paired with Chorizo & Polenta Lasagna. Paired very well with the dish.

2015 Cabernet Sauvignon - Paired very well with my grilled flank steak and asparagus. The marinade of the flank steak really brings out the cherry in the wine.

Celebrate World Malbec Day with Achaval-Ferrer

Today is World Malbec Day and to celebrate I think we should all grab a bottle of 2015 Achaval-Ferrer Malbec. Honestly I’ve never met a Mablbec that moved me this much.

What exactly is Malbec? Malbec is a grape that originated in France. It is one of the Bordeaux 5. Today it is grown in Argentina, Chile, Napa and a few other countries. It’s in Argentina where it has seen the most growth and Argentina is known today for its Malbec.

Malbec is not as heavy as a Cabernet Sauvignon and is very food friendly. It makes for a great barbecue wine and I personally like my Malbec with burgers and ribs. What can you expect from a Malbec, purplish in color with a rim that is hot magenta. Malbec can be bold but not heavy. It is aged in oak anywhere from 6 months to 20 months. The longer it’s aged the more expensive it will be. It has a pretty big flavor profile. You’ll find red, blue and black fruit along with cocoa, mocha, coffee and black pepper.

During Winestudio two weeks ago I got to sample Achaval-Ferrer 2015 Malbec and the first words out of Paul’s mouth was “Wow, this is a really nice wine, complex and great mouth feel” and I hadn’t even taken a sip yet.

Achaval-Ferrer 2015 Malbec shows just how the quality of winemaking has developed over the years in Argentina. 2015 was a tough vintage with weather issues throughout the year. They had lower yields and had to adjust and do things differently in the vineyard and the cellar. You would never known based on the quality of this bottle. It just a testament to the knowledge and winemaking skills at Achava- Ferrer.

The grapes in this bottle come from three appellations in Mendoza, Uco Valley, Lujan de Cuyo and Medrano. All three appellations are of different altitude ranging from 2199 ft to 3478 ft. The grapes from each of these appellations all contribute different elements to this wine. The grapes from the Lujan de Cuyo area with well drained gravelly loam soil contribute elegance to the wine. The Medrano region has some heavier clay soil gives the wine structure and complexity.

The wine was fermented in cement tanks and then put directly into 2 year old French oak barrels for 9 months. What is in the glass are aromas of cherry, smoke, mushrooms and floral notes of violets and lilac. The palate is very complex and has a beautiful mouth fee. Well balanced with flavors of plum, black cherry, coffee and a nice spice finish. This wine retails for $24.99 and is a steal at that price!

This wine is available in many markets. I purchased a bottle in New York City and shared it with my cousin. Then that Friday it was on the wine list at the restaurant we went to for Paul’s birthday so I ordered a bottle and got to share it with my kids. I hope you grab a bottle and celebrate World Malbec Day or any ocassion with it.

Blending Quimera with Santiago Achaval

Born in Rochester Minnesota, Santiago Achaval moved to Argentina when he was 6. He  grew up in Argentina and went to college there as well, but got accepted to Stamford Graduate School of Business and headed for California.

Well he got bit by the wine bug while in grad school.  Spending weekends in Napa and Sonoma he knew when he returned to Argentina he wanted to open a small winery and that's what he did in 1998.

Santiago believes that it's all about the vineyards.  Terrior  and low yields allow the vineyards to express their character.  He believes less is more.  So no sulfites at crush, no enzymes, no tartaric corrections, no extended macerations, no racking off the lees, no fining and no filtering.

The goal of the tasting was the Quimera a blend of 5 grapes. Quimera represents their quest for perfection. In this wine they are seeking increasing levels of complexity, balance, nuance, length and power.  They want people to drink the wine young as well as age it.

In this tasting we not only tasted the 2012 Quimera we tasted the components that went into it.  Each separately so we could see how each wine contributed to the blend.

The blend consisted of 50% Malbec, 24% Cabernet Franc, 16% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Petit Verdot.

Let's explore the components.

2012 Achaval-Ferrer Malbec - This was a young and to me personally it lacked a bit of maturity. It had very savory and earthy notes combined with dark plum and black cherry.

2012 Achaval-Ferrer Cabernet Franc - This brings the complexity to the wine. A bit of earth and leather.  The tannins show nicely as did the red cherry with a hint of spice on the finish. (for the record, I liked this wine on it's own, but then again, it's one of my favorite grapes)

2012 Achaval-Ferrer Merlot - He's looking for the Merlot to bring freshness to the wine.  This Merlot was very soft and round.Nice mouth feel

2012 Cabernet Sauvignon - Full of red and black fruit.  Fresh acid notes toward the finish, yet soft

2012 Achaval-Ferrer Petit Verdot - This is his unsung hero...This brings everything together as well as adds to the color.  This had nice notes of vanilla, soft and silky mouth feel.

Now when you put it all together you have the 2012 Quimera (SRP $35) with layers of complexity. As you think about each layer, each of the components come to play.  It had some earthy notes and nice dark cherry, plum, tannins and the mouth feel was soft and enjoyable.