In this post I am going to talk about my current favorite grape. The Malbec.
But, before we go there it might be useful to know the exact relationship between a grape and the wine that uses the same name. In short, wines which take their names from a particular grape are required to have that one type of grape contributing to the large majority of the wine in that bottle.
Examples of this are wines such as Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Pinot Noir etc.
Well, you ask so what kind of a grape is Bordeaux. That brings us to the complex art or science of naming wines.
Presenting, in the Red corner, a small table showing how wines are named.
Wines are either named by the area they come from or by the grape that goes in to making in that particular wine. Typically European wines (called old world wines) bear the name of the area rather than the grape. For instance a Bordeaux comes from the Bordeaux region of France. There are 6 types of grapes that can go in to making a Bordeaux. Different chateaus and vintners have their own combination for making their Bordeaux wines.
The names that are based on grapes are of two types, varietals and blended. Varietals are wines where one type of grape contributes to at least 75% (in some countries 85%) of the wine. This is a legal requirement to call the wine by the name of that particular grape. A Blended wine is of course made by blending more than one type of grape in to the wine, ex a Shiraz-Cabernet which we see quite often on Indian shelves.
Personally I don’t think you can say one is superior to the other each of the two approaches produce the usual complement of good, bad and ugly wines. Incidentally France has a more complicated naming system than others and knowing that system will help you figure out whether that wine will be to your taste or not, more on that later.
Now that we have established some basic ground rules of the naming system let us talk about the grape Malbec.
Here is what Wiki has to say about it –
Malbec (pronounced: [mal.bɛk]) is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins, and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. The French plantations of Malbec are now found primarily in Cahors in South-West France. It is increasingly celebrated as an Argentine varietal wine and is being grown around the world.
In India I have mostly seen Malbecs from Argentina and not really many from France.
The last three Malbecs I have had, have all been amazing. Two of them were Argentinian and the third French. All three of them were full bodied, felt like it was a really mature wine.
It is the kind of wine that you can appreciate more once you have acquired a taste for full bodied wine.
When you drink a lighter wine it is less viscous and does not seem to hold as much complexity in the taste as a full bodied wine would. A full bodied wine tastes like it is thicker (though actual viscosity might not be so) and gives you a sense of drinking something that is heavier in taste.
By the way if you take a sip of wine and grimace and say this is not really sweet then I would suggest you steer clear of anything which says full-bodied, go for lighter wines.
The French Malbec I mention above was the better of the three but by a thin margin. The other two were right up there. Incidentally I have also found Malbecs to be typically stronger (on the alcoholic hit scale) than most others. I have included pictures of the French and one of the Argentinian, don’t have a pic of the third though.
So, in conclusion I would say, if you like your wine full-bodied and have developed a taste for it then close your eyes and go right ahead and order that Malbec from wherever you can. I have bought from Wine Society of India on occasion and have not been disappointed yet. The price point I have found of Argentinian Malbec in Bangalore has been in the ballpark of 1200 to 1500 INR.
But, before we go there it might be useful to know the exact relationship between a grape and the wine that uses the same name. In short, wines which take their names from a particular grape are required to have that one type of grape contributing to the large majority of the wine in that bottle.
Examples of this are wines such as Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Pinot Noir etc.
Well, you ask so what kind of a grape is Bordeaux. That brings us to the complex art or science of naming wines.
Presenting, in the Red corner, a small table showing how wines are named.
Wines are either named by the area they come from or by the grape that goes in to making in that particular wine. Typically European wines (called old world wines) bear the name of the area rather than the grape. For instance a Bordeaux comes from the Bordeaux region of France. There are 6 types of grapes that can go in to making a Bordeaux. Different chateaus and vintners have their own combination for making their Bordeaux wines.
The names that are based on grapes are of two types, varietals and blended. Varietals are wines where one type of grape contributes to at least 75% (in some countries 85%) of the wine. This is a legal requirement to call the wine by the name of that particular grape. A Blended wine is of course made by blending more than one type of grape in to the wine, ex a Shiraz-Cabernet which we see quite often on Indian shelves.
Personally I don’t think you can say one is superior to the other each of the two approaches produce the usual complement of good, bad and ugly wines. Incidentally France has a more complicated naming system than others and knowing that system will help you figure out whether that wine will be to your taste or not, more on that later.
Now that we have established some basic ground rules of the naming system let us talk about the grape Malbec.
Here is what Wiki has to say about it – Malbec (pronounced: [mal.bɛk]) is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins, and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. The French plantations of Malbec are now found primarily in Cahors in South-West France. It is increasingly celebrated as an Argentine varietal wine and is being grown around the world.
 |
| Argentinian |
In India I have mostly seen Malbecs from Argentina and not really many from France.
The last three Malbecs I have had, have all been amazing. Two of them were Argentinian and the third French. All three of them were full bodied, felt like it was a really mature wine.
It is the kind of wine that you can appreciate more once you have acquired a taste for full bodied wine.
When you drink a lighter wine it is less viscous and does not seem to hold as much complexity in the taste as a full bodied wine would. A full bodied wine tastes like it is thicker (though actual viscosity might not be so) and gives you a sense of drinking something that is heavier in taste.
 |
| French |
By the way if you take a sip of wine and grimace and say this is not really sweet then I would suggest you steer clear of anything which says full-bodied, go for lighter wines.
The French Malbec I mention above was the better of the three but by a thin margin. The other two were right up there. Incidentally I have also found Malbecs to be typically stronger (on the alcoholic hit scale) than most others. I have included pictures of the French and one of the Argentinian, don’t have a pic of the third though.
So, in conclusion I would say, if you like your wine full-bodied and have developed a taste for it then close your eyes and go right ahead and order that Malbec from wherever you can. I have bought from Wine Society of India on occasion and have not been disappointed yet. The price point I have found of Argentinian Malbec in Bangalore has been in the ballpark of 1200 to 1500 INR.
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