Challenger wine #7

McGuigan #0976 Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

I'm not really sure why Badger selected this wine, he doesn't even like Cab Sav, but I think he went all out on this one. It was beautiful. The nose is very strong with smokey, fruit and eucalyptus aromas. But once you taste it you're in for a treat, its black fruits eucalyptus and coffee. Quite heady.

I imagine myself standing in parched hot sunlight surrounded by eucalyptus trees, and as a breeze wafts through the trees you can almost taste the red rock earth. True Australia.

We scored 4 for quality and 4 for likeability. 

Wine flight at Gaucho

Either it's new, or I hadn't noticed before, but Gaucho now do wine flights. We took one for £22 each and had a glass of each of Ruta 89 2011 (Cab Sav/Malbec/Merlot), Luigi Bossa Corte G 2010 (Syrah/Merlot) and Zuccardi (Temperanillo/Malbec), all from Mendoza.

Drinking a couple of wines at the same time allows you to make comparisons between even subtly different wines. We certainly could tell the difference between these three.

The Ruta we found to be fruity yet a little bitter,  like Kale. This one suited Badger because he likes a Malbec. The Bossa was punchy, round, and sledgehammer subtle (but in a good way!), its fun and definitely gets the party going. Badger said if it was a movie it would be Transporter 2. It has a lot of black fruit, ribena and black tea flavours. I enjoyed this one.

But the best was the Zuccardi. At first we weren't convinced, but then we noticed how velvety it was, very soft, almost like kissing. It has a hint of clove, but not enough to make you think of the dentist.

I did find it particularly difficult to get any imagery for these wines,probably because we were in a restaurant where there are so many smells and sounds to compete with. Best try these again at home eh?

Challenger wine #6

Barista Pinotage Western Cape South Africa 2010

I chose this one because I am not that fond of South African wines but Pinotage is a varietal that I enjoy exploring, it has so many variations on flavour yet always packs a punch.

I know the name gies it away, but I still wasn't expecting the overpowering aroma of coffee. Very odd! It has a lovely taste of coffee, chocolate and cherry. It is a little bitter though, although the tannins mellow and then the red fruit pushes through.

It reminds me of sitting in a diner in the USA drinking "cawfee", with sweet and savoury smells coming from the kicthen, watching the world go by.

Badger and I agreed the wine was well made, with a clever manipulation of the flavours to produce such a coffee intensity, so we give it 4 for quality. Only scores 3 on likeability, because although we would buy it again, it would probably be as a gimmick or for a friend.