2006 Vina Cobos Malbec, Bramare $35-40

Lujan de Cuyo

Argentina, Mendoza, Lujan de Cuyo

Yet another reason why I love Vina Cobos' Malbec wines! In fact, I feel the same way about most of their other wines too. We had the 2007 Felino Chardonnay ($13-18) the other night and it was outstanding with this healthy spin on fried chicken (recipe).

"Bramare" is Italian for "to yearn for" and let me tell you, I yearn for this wine when I get a hankering for some Malbec! I usually pick up a few of the Malbec and the Cabernet Sauvignon as they are great values compared to any region in the world.

On to the notes...

Color: Dark and saturated deep purple to red edges, vibrant

Nose & Palate: Heady aromas of blackberry and raspberry, currants too. The palate that adds blueberries, crushed juicy raspberries, some licorice and blackberry. A touch of bitter sweet cacao chocolate, earth and minerality add depth and further complexity. A long, silky smooth finish!

BACK the truck up and load up!

Cheers!

Vina Cobos 2005 Bramare "Lujan de Cuyo" Malbec, Argentina - $30-40
Vina Cobos is a winery in the heart of the famed Mendoza in western Argentina near the Chilean border and nestled in the foothills of the Andes mountain range. Vina Cobos is lead by 3 different enologists; Andrea Marchiori, Luis Barraud, and the most famous and a personal favorite of mine, Californian Paul Hobbs.

The Vina Cobos winery makes quite a few wines, though they are mostly known for their Malbec, the king grape of Argentina, and to a lesser degree Cabernet Sauvignon. This Malbec wine is from the Vina Cobos lower middle tier, the Bramare Lujan du Cuyo set of wines. It cost me about $32 and this is the second time I have had this wine. The first time we had this Malbec it was good but not nearly as great as this time around. Lisa also agreed this time around was by far superior to the last time we had the wine – maybe it was bottle shock?

Either way, here we go on the 2005:

Color: Dark Purple with dark edges. Nose: Spice, some toasty mocha oak, rich black fruits

Palate: Rich and meaty flavors mingle together. Classic oak, black earthy soil, blackberry and blueberry mesh well with supple tannins and great acidity. Lots of deep flavors going on here.

Finish: Well measured acid and tannins give structure and freshen the palate without getting in the way!

The wine had a great balance of aromatics, flavors, tannin and acidity at this time.

This is the best Malbec I have ever had for the money (including special Achaval and Catena wines)! Yes, I am sure there are better but at least I do not taste massive amounts of iron and iodine, way too prevalent in many under $20 wines from Argentina. This gives me reason to explore further.

Cheers!