Torrontes
We're flying back to South America today, this time to the Mendoza Appelation in Argentina. Mendoza is in the far western part of the country in the foothills of the Andes and is far closer to Santiago, Chile than any place that anyone but Argentines have ever heard of in Argentina.
For those who are into climate conditions, Mendoza, depending on how you look at it, is either blessed or cursed with some of the driest weather on the planet. That combined with the rocky soil influenced by the particularly rough mountain range to its west as well as the high winds most of the year produce highly stressed grapes. Today, we taste Torrontes from that area.
We have in front of us six pours of Torrontes from six local estates. While all were produced from grapes grown particularly close to each other, we notice that each of the wines has a very different level of acidity from the others. This has been one of the banes of the grape -- the inability of winemakers to effectively control the acidity in the wines Torrontes produces.
At their best, when acidity is moderate, Torrontes produces a highly aromatic wine, in many ways reminiscent of Gewurtzraminer, full of stone fruit and spice with ginger notes. At its worst, Torrontes can be so astringent as to taste like bad mouthwash.
What is a wine drinker to do? Consider serving inexpensive Torrontes at a lower temperature than you might ordinarily drink a white wine. The decrease of 2 to 3 degrees C will, to some extent, tame the acidity. If you can do that, the crispness of Torrontes becomes quite refreshing at a very good price point.
While the acidity can harm the taste, it makes Torrontes a flexible wine to pair with food. In particular, it will do well with white meats, sweet and spicy vegetables, and the spices found in India and farther east.
Tomorrow, we'll stay in South America to avoid the daily jet lag. Until then, enjoy.
For those who are into climate conditions, Mendoza, depending on how you look at it, is either blessed or cursed with some of the driest weather on the planet. That combined with the rocky soil influenced by the particularly rough mountain range to its west as well as the high winds most of the year produce highly stressed grapes. Today, we taste Torrontes from that area.
We have in front of us six pours of Torrontes from six local estates. While all were produced from grapes grown particularly close to each other, we notice that each of the wines has a very different level of acidity from the others. This has been one of the banes of the grape -- the inability of winemakers to effectively control the acidity in the wines Torrontes produces.
At their best, when acidity is moderate, Torrontes produces a highly aromatic wine, in many ways reminiscent of Gewurtzraminer, full of stone fruit and spice with ginger notes. At its worst, Torrontes can be so astringent as to taste like bad mouthwash.
What is a wine drinker to do? Consider serving inexpensive Torrontes at a lower temperature than you might ordinarily drink a white wine. The decrease of 2 to 3 degrees C will, to some extent, tame the acidity. If you can do that, the crispness of Torrontes becomes quite refreshing at a very good price point.
While the acidity can harm the taste, it makes Torrontes a flexible wine to pair with food. In particular, it will do well with white meats, sweet and spicy vegetables, and the spices found in India and farther east.
Tomorrow, we'll stay in South America to avoid the daily jet lag. Until then, enjoy.
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