Still could drink well for a few more years. Modest nose of fruit and tobacco; med. to full body with flavors of blackberry, coffee, earth. Good acidity. Enjoy with or without food.
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dark garnet hue; black cherry ganache and cigar box on the nose; well-integrated tannins, black fruit, forest floor. After a day of opening, definitely a pleasure to imbibe.
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still working on drinking up dusties with longevity estimates prior to 2019. shared with pat at selkirk manor. celebrating the holiday weekend. we have enjoyed this wine since 2009, drinking a bottle every one or two years. it has been fun watching the wine develop and evolve over that period of time. had not enjoyed one of these since last tasted on 9/3/2017. at that time the wine was not fully mature but heavy sedimentation suggested that it might be reaching peak. presently, two years later, some bottle variation is evident in that the sedimentation is less abundant and the acidic spine suggests that the wine still has further to go. in addition, aeration via vigorous swirling in the glass was necessary to fully bring out the fruit components. the wine continues toshow bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. firm structure. still coming together. this remains one of my favorite mid-level argentine malbecs. alas, this was the last of seven bottles so i will not have an opportunity to see how the wine presents in its final stage of development.
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shared with pat at selkirk manor. celebrating the holiday weekend. we have enjoyed this wine since 2009, drinking a bottle every one or two years. it has been fun watching the wine develop and evolve over that period of time. had not enjoyed one of these since last tasted 9/2016. the wine is still robust and continues to show well. notes similar to last time. bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. nice structure. still coming together. heavy sedimentation in the last glass poured. this remains one of my favorite mid-level argentine malbecs. may have the last bottle in about six months since it seems to be peeking.
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shared with pat at selkirk manor to celebrate the end of the work week. had not enjoyed one of these since last tasted 2/2015. the wine is still robust and continues to show well. notes similar to last time. bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. nice structure. still coming together. the wine continues to show potential for further longevity. may try another one in about six months to see how it progresses.
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Lovely dark color, berries and cherries comprise much of the taste, nicely blended after this amount of time, still showing some tannin, so it may age even a bit longer.
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shared with pat at selkirk manor to celebrate the end of the work week. had not enjoyed one of these for a while. came back to it as i was concerned about longevity lacking notes from others since the new year. the wine continues to show well. bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. nice structure. still coming together. will wait six months before trying another one.
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I was somewhat surprised that the age did not have a negative on this wine. It had a very fruit forward taste with along with a very smooth and full aftertaste. I would not hesitate in drinking this wine with this age again.
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Decent malbec, similar notes as before. Had a glass left on day 3 which I liked more than the previous 2 days...tannins had become a bit more fine grained and the wine was drinking well, will decant the last bottle when we have it.
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shared with pat at selkirk manor. paired with roast beef. this remains one of my favorite mid-level argentine malbecs. tasting notes similar to last year. the wine has changed little except that it seems to have developed even more grace and the nose is a bit more pronounced. having survived its teenage years, i suspect that the wine continues to have a bright future. there is some debate among others regarding projected longevity. i will remain on the conservative side for now and watch closely. the fact that it has done well so far, suggests to me that this is one of catena's more successful vintages.
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This was really nice today, think is is at its peak. Medium dark red opaque color. Black currant, black fruit on the nose. Palate is black fruit. medium finish
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Tasted from a 6L - I was worried this would be dead but it was actually quite nice. Like prior taster noted, clearly at its peak but this was enjoyable with beef spedini. Dried cherry / cranberry, some nice vegetal undertones on both nose & palate. Medium body with medium finish. 89+/-
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shared with pat at selkirk manor. this remains one of my favorite argentina malbecs below $20. it is amazing that the producer can obtain such quality from a product that is produced in large quantity. the wine remains clean, fresh and vibrant 5 years after the vintage. there is ample fruit as well as firm structure. components are well balanced providing a graceful mouth feel. i have no doubt that this wine will become even more attractive with a few more years in bottle.
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Pleasant on day 1 with tannins a bit strong. Had hoped day 2 would be better but while tannins muted, a new unpleasnt vegetal element on the finish is now present. After visiting mendoza recently and enjoying some truly unique and tasty Catana Zapata malbecs this one is not fully up to the improved standard
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Deep integrated dark fruit blends seamlessly with creamy oak. This wine gives you a long finish with a pleasant acidity on the palate. A great mouth-feel as others have noted. Not a bad choice for under $20 bones.
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i tasted this wine before i bought a bottle and i recall then thinking that it needed a little time to balance itself out. that is still the case. it has good acidity, good fruit (mainly blackberry), a touch of chocolate and coffee, some good tannins, and an excellent finish. but it isn't in balance yet. i wish i had another bottle to see how it is in a couple of years. ho hum.
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Decanted through Vinturi and left in decanter for 30 minutes, however it seems very closed. Nose of berries and a hint of coffee and you can certainly tell that the alcohol is strong. Palate is medium weight with red fruits and cassis leading to a medium to lengthy finish with a hint of oak. I can't decide whether I like this or not. Somehow there is nothing wrong with it but at the same time nothing grabs my attention. have had these before with good results but maybe it's past it's prime. Will update if it gets better with air.
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Agree with Viini-Viren's comment on 1/6/11. This is somewhat simple for the price of this wine. The nose was good with a lot of moss, wet leaves, and peat. Not much in the way of berries or fruits. More damp vegitation. But that was it. As for the palate, it was very indistinctive. Just a decent "wine" flavor. Nothing terribly distinctive. Unfortunately, nothing justifying this price either. I think I've had a previous vintage which was far better. This drank more like a $15 Chianti - light and simple. I expected a lot more complexity in this wine. I've enjoyed the Catena wines many times in the past, but the simple ones at half this price drank the same way. I guess I'm very disappointed because I expected much more complexity, depth, nose, and flavors from this bottle. I can buy many Zins at this same price point which display far more depth and character. Same with a number of Cabs.
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Dark violet, ruby with medium/lite viscosity in the glass. Closed nose of cherry pie, spice and varnish. Soft, round cherry compote on the palate. Secondary spice (cinnamon) with some noticeable heat. Medium, slick finish. Drinkable, but not much character…leaning towards fake.
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- Garnet color with medium forming legs and aromas of dusty and has flavours of butterscotch and vanilla - Very enjoyable. Thought it would be past, but still full flavor, rich. Last bottle.
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Simpler than previous vintages. Needs time (1-2 h) to open. Full bodied fruity with berries and nicely tannic. Not much nuances here. very straight forward.
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First thing you notice is how dark purple this wine is. Somewhat interesting blackberry/currant flavors at first but ultimately this is hidden under too much oak. Just OK.
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Very dark, with notes of bramble, blackcurrant and tobacco and cedar. Slightly sour plum, with good depth of fruit. Integrated tannins and lovely fruit and tobacco finish. Lovely stuff.
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Opened and aired for 30 minutes. There is a hint of menthol in the smell and overripe berries. On the palate it is quite smooth with a gentle finish. Very nice with blue cheese or gouda.
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Dense and tightly wound for an entry-level Malbec, this one could use either some more bottle age or, as another reviewer suggested, a big ol' steak. More points for structure than immediate enjoyment, but this could yield more pleasure in another couple of years.
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Brilliant red-purple color. Pleasant smoky nose with coffee and toast. Palate is smooth and round, with little perceptible tannin and seemingly low acidity--but never jammy or roasted. Some currants and red berries on the palate and a medium length toasty finish. Nice and well made, but rather forgettable. Possibly slightly past peak, but drinking well enough.
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Very dark in colour. In the nose aromas of cherry pit, forest berries, prunes with hints of smoke. On the palate intensively fruity, with good structure, distinct acidity and pleasant tannins.
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Opened at a large BBQ so no detailed notes. But this was very nice. Great body and mouthfeel. The fruit was still lively but this was smoother and better integrated than a year ago. Last of my '06s; hope the 07s are as good. This wine is a very reliably good QPR.
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Great body. The wine feels substantial in the mouth. Dark fruit with a touch of mocha. At peak (or possibly just past it). This is not a long-term ager. A favorite and very good value. Note: The Bodega Catena Zapata (not this one that says "Catena" in large letters, nor the "Alamos") is technically a better wine. Better vineyard selection, more expensive wood regimen. However, sometimes I prefer the "Catena" because Malbec is fresher with less new wood.
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This wine is starting to show some mature aromas and was more delicious than a year ago. I bought several to try how these will age and at the moment everything seems to be getting better. There is however a certain ruggedness to this wine and the alcohol comes through a little bit. So, less refined than comparable Bordeaux, but powerful for the cost. Will wait for the next one for about a year.
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Drank over 2 nights - definitely starting to lose its edge; medium ruby color, lighter body than usual, still a nice malbec - possibly badly aged bottle (picked up last week in Balt.)
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Dark blackberry like color. Cherry and blackberry on the nose. Starts fruity, but quickly changes to tart and dry in the mouth. Mredium, pleasant finish. Great with steak, a little tart and heavy to drink by itself. Overall a very decent Malbec.
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Opened up after one hour. Had some chocolate and blackberry and a great color. Could a couple more years but it is drinking great now. I will decant the next bottle.
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nose: bright, but at the same time sappy. ash, plum, blackberry and bits of chocolate palate: balanced fruit, tannin and acidity. delicious. short finish, but a fantastic wine for $16. some notes indicate that it seems to be on a downslope, which I can't comment to this since this is my first bottle. but if I saw this around, I would buy, buy,buy for drinking right now.
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as others have noted, this wine has seen its peak;decent food wine but no complexity; fruit is pretty tame and not going anywhere; would steer to the Alta
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VG malbec - been drinking a lot of 2007 and opened this for comparison - WOW; dark purple color with loads of berry and mocha - long finish; much heavier than 2007
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Not bashful, fairly fruity, but enough balance to be legit and fairly delicious. A nice bottle for the price with solid QPR. I have been happy with this producer time and again for the value.
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The wine looks Ruby colored. It smells like Raisin, and Plum. It tastes like Plum, and Oak. The body is Medium. The wine is textured Round. The wine finishes Medium.
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Pop and pour. Serviceable, but compared to past bottles, never quite got to that dusty, smoky pleasant place I remember from previous bottles. If you have any left, start drinking them now.
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Intense purple color. The nose is jammy black fruits all the way. The mouth is jammy black fruit all the way. This wine covers the entire palate with sugary fruit. Not much acidity. All little young maybe.
Not a food wine at all.
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Very nice but not that distinctive. Deep colour, lots of blackberry, plum and currant currant fruit. Juicy, with soft dry tannins, soft currant and cherry fruit. Decent finish.
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Dark violet, purplish color with a focused nose expressing dark berries. The body is rich and full-bodied, with hints of black cherry, tobacco and leather. Tannins have not integrated that well as of tasting, but carries a structure that is built for medium-term cellaring. The finish is decently long with loads of mineral flavors. Doesn't perform quite as well as the '05 yet. Drink from 2010 to 2017.
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Inky dark colour. From the bottle and for the first night this wine was closed, with hardly any attack. The second night it really came out of it's shell, with stewed prunes. Silky smooth on the palate and some very good acidity. The finish was good and I would say this was up there as far as Malbec's go, but it needs some open time before it shows it's worth.
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Very dark purple. Expressive nose with black cherry, sour cherry, black pepper, flowers and freshness. Full-bodied with dense, fresh fruit, firm tanins and high acidity. Long finish. From now to 2015.
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Solid bottle of Malbec, reasonable value at $18 although also nothing too special about it. Paul liked it a little more than Jenn who thought it was average.
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Very dark, blackberry-black colour. Aromas of forest fruit with dominant notes of blackberry. On the palate well-built, full-bodied, balanced, soft and smooth. Very fruit-forward. Nice smooth finish.
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Nice fruity Malbec. Good weight and smooth mouthfeel, but somewhat simple in aroma and flavor. Nothing offensive here, but did not show as well as all of the other Malbecs we were tasting with it, including a $6 bottle of Torrevieja.
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Disappointing vintage. Gone is the velvety, plumlike txture from 2005. Instead lots of fresh fruit and acids. Not to my liking. Maybe decanting could help?
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lsmft round firm and fully packed. this is a substantial wine and is reasonably priced, resulting in excellent qpr. this is one of the better mendoza malbecs priced under $25. nice red fruit along with a hint of chocolate. this wine is youthful in both color and taste. can easily go to 2011 if not longer. will try to resist opening another one until then.
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Nez assez simple de chocolat noir et de mures. Une certaine pureté dans le fruit et de la fraîcheur pour un Malbec argentin, mais finale un peu courte et fluide. Pas le deal du siècle à ce prix.
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Nose and palate opens very green and vegital, like a young Bordeaux, but also like a young Bordeaux there's a backbone of balance, fruit and earth that should evolve for some time to come. Not a pleasurable wine now at 4 years on harvest, but I'll tuck a couple away and try them again in 2014-2015 or so, expecting some real magic....I'd put money on a 92-95 score in 5 years.
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Lovely deep purple color. Mouthfeel was a bit thin on the front but had some nice structure in the back. Big fruit notes balanced nicely with the tannins and acid. A very tasty wine.
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Notes largely consistent with previous bottles. Pop and pour. For the first hour, this was quite tart, but with enough air, recovered to previous form. Next time, I'd give it an hour in the decanter before serving.
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Made from 100% Malbec, this wine shows lovely baked plum, blackcurrant and cassis characters on the nose. The palate is rich and smooth - well integrated tannins and a lovely long finish.
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I like the purple tone of this wine when it first comes out of the bottle, but once in the glass, it is much more ruby tone, dark and dense. The oak is obvious on the nose, but then also some barnyard, some moss, and a tiny little strawberry. This wine has seen its peak already. It is still full bodied, very rich and bold, but the fruit isn't too much there anymore. The oak is. It is creamy and jammy. The finish is kind of spicy; also hot. Dark chocolate. Perhaps a barbeque type wine.
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So good for the money I can barely believe it. Cedar and intense berries on the nose. A hint of funkiness here, but it's not unpleasant. Round and full on the palate, with berries, leather and spice. I will most definitely be looking for more of this.
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Have to wonder how many cases/production runs there are of this wine. This wine has little to do with other notes. Meaty, black pepper, bell pepper and spice on the nose. Classy nose. But the palate lacks the suppleness of good Malbecs. Not a typical Malbec problem--acid is too apparent. Oddly not a fruit bomb. Soft tannins, though. Linear acid-driven flavors without much of a finish. Nice wine, but not delivering above its price point.
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Excellent value and very typical of its type - £10 here gets you a complex Argentinian Malbec with classic notes of deep fruit, chocolate, grippy tannins and dark fruit that will not smother the palate. What is more, compared to Clos de Los Siete from Rolland and friends this is cheaper, more complex, goes better with food and is much much better, "FACT!!!" to quote David Brent from The Office. Forget Rolland and his generic offerings, this is where the smart money is.
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Cherry, rasberry, light tabacco. Smooth. Nice nose right after open. Fruity but subtle. Little tanic, with sediment (filter next time). Medium bodied but short finish. Too dry and tanic to drink on its own. Works well with red meat. like to see how some more time works with the balance
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Very tight on first pour. Eventually gave way to rich, earthy plum, cassis, and a touch of vanilla on the nose. Milk chocolate, anise, and leather eventually emerge. Smooth tannins on the opulent and refined palate. Good balance overall.
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This wine will not offend anyone, or at least not many. It manages to conceal the extracted nature of many Malbecs (and indeed many from this winery). At the same, it never goes anywhere interesting. For the money (not that it was expensive), you should get better wine.
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Popped and poured with grilled ribeye steaks. Tart at first, with flavors of black and bing cherries, plums, black pepper, notes of leather, chocolate and a touch of vanilla; smooth, integrated tannins, and bright cherries on the long finish. It became less tart and a bit darker with time, and it went perfectly with the steaks. Not as lush and flavorful as I was expecting. I'm thinking it would have been a lot more enjoyable with hours of decanting or with another day or two after opening.
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Very tart fruit, almost citrus/grapefruit dominated with no real redeeming features. Does clean the palate, isn't offensive, but doesn't have a bunch going for it. My first Malbec and this seems a little young. Will let the other bottle sit for a year or so.
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Deep purple. Aromatic dark fruits, black cherries, distinct spice character.
Nice resonant fruits, supple tannins & spice. I agree with the note below; the richness is akin to a roasted beet. There is a harmony here between the sweet Malbec character and the gentle oakiness and Zin spice. Drank some low-end Mendoza Malbecs alongside it and they really accentuated the strengths of this wine. Great paired with pasta at dinner and cherry-chili dark chocolate for dessert.
I paid $21 but have seen it for $15 which would make a great QPR. I would rate this even higher but my wife's tempering opinion lands it at 88 pts.
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Dark in color. Fabulous nose that just burst with chocolate covered cherries, boysenberry, raspberry. Palate is moderate in body and fruit notes continue. Nice tannins and a nice zip of acidity. Not overly complex and maybe a bit sweet but overall well balanced and satisfying. Finishes a bit short.
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a nice wine that could come from anywhere "new". dark, purple with obvious oak influence and some chocolate undertones. all in all just a slight disappointment that all typicity is eroded by the oak treatment but a pleasant drink nonetheless.
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A bit more blackberry and smoke than I remember from last summer, but otherwise consistent with previous tasting notes. This wine demands grilled meat.
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I expected more, to be honest, because of the critics' consistently generous notes. What I taste here is a fairly priced wine, an ok value, but it doesn't perform past its price point. Not terribly aromatic, some black and blue berries on the nose. Initially seeming thin, the palate does turn on with currant and blueberry, with stony minerality. The finish is almost its best feature, with cocoa and powerful, persistent fruit, but there are also some bitter tannins there.
Maybe it's expectations set too high, but I just can't be excited about it even though it's a nice enough wine.
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Very deep dark colour. Black berries, beetroot, spice and later raisin nose. Also spice and Black berries on the palate. Fine balanced acidity. Overall very harmonic wine, ready to go.
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Catena Wines (Waterford): very aromatic. gunflint?? is that sulfur? juicy raspberry fruit. pretty mellow tannin (vintage about to flip??). not so burly. easy wine. bottle variation.
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A malbec on the more elegant and restrained side, but lacks the mid-palate and roundness I look for and finishes thin, a little sour, and rather short. Starts off nicely with raspberry and plum, but then tails off. Medium acidity with some oaks nuances. I will try the wine again tomorrow and see if it benefits from extended air as many suggest.
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Le vin est rubis tirant beaucoup sur le violacé. Le nez est très aromatique. Le fruit noir est très présent, de même qu’un peu de fraise cuite. Le bois est à peine perceptible. En bouche, encore là le fruit prend une belle place et en offre pas mal. Le fruit noir (bleuet et mûre principalement) s’allient avec des notes d’épices (muscade et cardamone) pour mener à une belle finale où après 2 heures, j’ai senti un soupçon de café au lait. Aucunement le vin est surboisé (le bois est même très intégré et offre un support en arrière-plan tout au plus), de même que l’alcool est très digeste et ne chauffe pas ni ne rend le vin désagréable.
Je suis un peu subjugé face à ce vin puisque j’étais convaicu que j’aurais préféré le cabernet-sauvignon. Enfin, ce dernier (le cab), offre une plus belle finesse, tandis que ce Malbec offre un fruit pur et agréable, un plaisir immédiat. De beaux produits quoi !
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Ful colour. Quite an enticing nose of blue and black berries. Palate fruit-led in a creamy, rounded, low-tannin, moderate acidity way. Ripe and full, steak-friendly. Towards the end of the evening and the bottle this had lost some of the obviously rounded creamy fruit and the acidity was starting to feel a little out of kilter. Respectable hearty food wine, lacking in some complexity **1/2
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gravel and thinly veiled blackberry to the nose. there's a bit of a hike in the woods thing to this wine. rustic would be too easy. on the palate. lean and mean. well not so mean. you know what i mean? dark cherry starts to jump out of the nose. is it black cherry Kool-Aid? so expressive on the nose. tar, blacktop, and gravel all in my mouth. how's that?
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Very dark ruby hue, 95% saturated, minimal dusting at the rim. Needs lots of airtime. After 4 hours I get some Malbec character but it's very low key and could easily pass as Syrah. There is a little note of the butterscotch, burnt caramel, and dirty grease that I like in a Malby's aroma but this is quite tame under the high heat. Palate is juicy dark plum and prune, blackcurrant and the finishing note also gives a peek of some varietal character with nice oak treatment. However, the alcohol is suffocating the rich smoothness of the fruit. Medium-big body and nice acidity balance, lots of soft tannin that will help it improve - if the alcohol can behave. (5+10+16+7) = 88
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Perfectly fine but insipid - balanced with no obvious flaws but no obvious charm. Made me miss the dense delicious malbecs of the 90s. Robert agreed - do not buy again
Seems to be the victim of a lot of grade inflation.
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Dark purple color and full bodied at 13.9% alcohol. Aromas of dark fruits, plums, carroway and earth. On the palate it was of dark berry fruits, plums and graphite. This wine would be better paired with food than on its own, it has the right acidity to go with an appropriate meal. To be better on its own, another couple years in the cellar would help it out.
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Elegant fruit, so pure and delicious. Blackberries cradle you with enough structure to keep you feeling safe and secure in the arms of one of my favorite malbecs. (All of my favorites of which happen to also be Catena's.)
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Black fruit, fennel and wet dirt on the nose. In the mouth, plum and cranberry fruit. Minerality and acidity on the finish. Needed at least an hour out of the bottle.
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The nose is allot more complex than the Felino. More lavender, honey, grapey appely. Lighter, lifting palate. Youthful. Crisp, clean, and very lively. What a superb wine at $19.
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Raspberry and plum on the nose. We consumed it right away and may have made a mistake. I note Karmapa's description and will give my second bottle a better chance with a much longer decanting.
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Deep ruddy purple color. Full nose of rich blackberry and plum accented by funky damp earth (swamp grass?), mocha, paprika, and a floral/citrus overtone. Interesting and attractive. Elegant structure on the palate: rich, dark wild berries with leather, graphite, and a focused core of zingy citrus acidity. Moderate/lighter tannins. Very good length. A little mocha latte on the finish. Beautiful stuff.
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Carmel and candied fruit on the attack, but finishes with the classic muscular red fruit of the malbec. Definitely more fruit than earth or leather, but a solid enjoyable wine. Good value.
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Great every day drinker. Good acidity makes this a very food friendly wine. We consumed over 3 days. Wine was sealed with vacu-vin when not being drunk. Wine definitely tasted better on second day. Held it's own on third.
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13.9% ABV - Malbec, assumed 100% - tasted on 03/19/09 at GWT #4 One of four wines tasted on this night, the most unique and a real surprise the day after. Lively purple hue, a pleasure to see, this bottle was opened and decanted. Earthy barnyard stink that lasted through the several hours of the night's tasting, somewhat disturbing and hard to get accustomed to. Bright, crisp and forward berry taste, this bottle needed a full hour to show some smoothness. Nose did not improve at all by the second hour, and although taste on the palate had evened out, decided to put under vacuum for the next day ...and my, what a change the following night! The entire barnyard stink now gone and in its place a subtle bouquet of far-off crushed grapes, very nice. And on the palate now a clean young wine with just a faint hint of the previous night's berry overtones; a real pleasure to now drink and wishing we had more than half the bottle to enjoy. Comments were that this Malbec needs 3-4hrs of decanting before it shows the beauty within, most likely due to its youth. Enjoy now or probably within 5yrs. Started much below 80 but worked its way up; let's call it 82 with an upside.
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Basic malbec wine of Catena. A little spicy, with a good sensation of dark fruit, like blackberry. Tasted also chocolate. Good acidity. Perfect with a pizza or napolitana pasta.
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Wine HOuse Advanced: Deep color; blkberry, rasp, cassis, currant leaf; choc, mint, jam, liquorice, spice, pepper; med. bod, bit low a’s & fin.; very good for this, except where noted, grt flavors. This changes my opinion on Malbec.
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An easy-drinking malbec; nothing complex, but relatively enjoyable. Plum, some candied fruit, and a touch of mineral. Light-to-medium bodied. Short finish. A decent way to start the evening.
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A fair malbec but better ones for the money. Restrained nose with dark berrys lurking above a mild earthy floor that leads to a smooth but short finish with mild tannins. A generally boring malbec, especially compared to the 2004 Familia Zuccardi Malbec Q we just had.
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Cracking value. Paid £10 and you get a good quality wine here. Deep colour, on the nose perfumed violets, dark fruit - intense aromas. In the mouth a superb mix of dark fruit, some oak but good depth and a nice balance with the tannins. Just the right side of full-bodied - this doesn't get too cloying or fat. There is nice balance here. Very very good for the price. An excellent example of Malbec.
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Tobacco blueberry and mulberry on the nose. Deep and oak driven. On the palate very sexy texture with chocolate and black fruits. Simple but delicous. YUM
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Really dark and concentrated at the moment. After some time, the palate opened up a bit to give some dark berries and mocha but finishing a little stewed with a tough wall of tannins. Might need some short term cellaring to come together.
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Popped and poured. Drank with dinner and after by itself. Dark purple color. Nose of vanilla, blackberry and a whiff of graphite. Medium bodied palate with refreshing acidity, sweet dark fruit and youthful tannins. Decent length. A very good, well-balanced wine. Not quite outstanding. Addendum: this wine was better and had more fruit on the palate on day 2: maybe 90 pts .
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Purple and black in color, with leather and dark fruit aromatics. Blue and black fruit, violets, and wet earth essences show on the palate. Nicely balanced, yet fairly straightforward. Drinks clean, with a crisp medium-length finish.
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Inky black/purple colour. Nose of blackcurrant and leather. Black fruits in the mouth, good acidity and soft tannins - very smooth. Good length, around 20 seconds.
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rood paars, diep donker fruit, licht wat aards, niet zo heel uitgesproken, smaak is stevig met fruit, wat body en ook wat stroefheid, misschien heeft de wijn nog even nodig, kwam later wat mooier over
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Meh. Highly drinkable wine, but highly boring too. Very smooth, but lacks complexity in any way. Exceedingly light on tannins, which is fine if there is some complexity there, but there isn't. This red wine is suitable for those that don't really like red wine, if that makes any sense to the reader. At $17 (from Costco) it's not a good value at all.
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Great juice at $16.99. Dark, rich fruit with somewhat of a tannic finish (more in tjib's camp then the rest). Not overly complex, but a nice bottle of wine at the price to go with steaks.
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Ordered off the wine list at Paladar. Pop and poured, immediately accessible dark fruits, soft tannins. Full bodied, not likely a wine for the ages, but very drinkable right now
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Soft tannins with abundance of fruit tones. Medium body with disappointing finiish. Very easy to drink even now but don't think it will improve with age.
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Fully drinkable upon opening. Smooth, lush, low tannins. Perfectly paired with a meat lunch, not overly full of alcohol. Well-made wine, easy to quaff. Nice balance of fruit.
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Very fruity, strawberries and other red berries with a hint of herbs and liquorice. Still young, but ready to drink even now. Wine has silky tannins an is good value for money.
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Dark ruby red, quite brilliant. Young wine of expressive and intriguing nose, actually quite beautiful nose, with notes of red and dark cherries, then followed by caramel taffy, and ending with scents of green tobacco leaves. Elegant transition on the palate, delicious creamy texture, with gorgeous transition from mid-palate to end consisting of dark rich caramel notes, cardamon, clove, and spices. Appreciable structure that makes you wonder where this wine is headed in four or five years of cellaring. Tasty notes of dark chocolate. Very good quality fruit and beautiful integration of it in its fine transition. This wine is gorgeous to drink by itself.
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Popped and poured. Deep ruby hue. Tight at first, it took about 2 hours for this wine to fully open and reveal nice aromas of black cherry, earth, violets, and stone. Medium-plus body, a rush of ripened black fruits, ripe currant, a touch of dried fruit, plus a distinct minerality all work together in harmony on the palate, the tannins firm and slightly chalky. The fruit is bright and vibrant on the nice finish due to refreshing, almost heightened acidity derived from Argentina's unique climate......in fact, this would be a great red to pour for the acid lovers. Due to the tannins, acidity, and fruit, this wine should have a nice life ahead of it.
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Deep ruby to purple color. Cherry, and a hint of licorice on the nose. Palate is full and dominated by black fruit. Nice tannins. Moderately long finish.
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Deep purple colour. Sweet cherry with a hint of cassis on the nose. On the palate the black fruit dominated but overal structure a little fine boned and short on length. This wine may need more air than we gave it, because the wine certainly beefed up with better length as we got to the end of the bottle.
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Deep, dark ruby purple; on the nose, kirsch and a brighter berry will give way to kirsch, licorice and cassis; The palate is full and a very classic balanced texture reminiscent of a Bordeaux claret. Nice tannic structure which suggests that more time (another year or two) in the cellar will be rewarded. Classic and even juicy style of malbec which needs about 2 hrs. to open. Subtle but balanced and present finish.
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In the glass, dark red fading rapidly to black at the core. On the nose, akin to a Napa cab, with a touch of that dusty Malbec funk. On the palate, dark fruit with structure, melting away to soft tannins on the moderately long finish. A great choice to accompany grilled meat; worked very well with flank steak and chimichurri.
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Works well at its price point but does seem to be loosing a bit of steam from the old days.
These wines were all tasted together in one night over a period of 10 hours.
2006 Clos La Coutale Chaors, 2006 Catena Malbec, 2005 Catena Cabernet, 2005 Catena Alta Malbec, 2004 Bramare Marchiori Vineyard Malbec, 2006 Bramare Lujan de Cuyo District Cabernet, 2005 Paul Hobbs Crossbarn Cabernet, 2004 Nicolas Catena Zapata, 2004 Cobos, 2004 Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard, 2004 Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard.
In general the feeling was the all of the Catena wines, from top to bottom, are stylistic, elegant, well made and classy to drink. Paul Hobbs’ wines are certainly not chump change though. They are by far flashier and sometimes run the risk of becoming over-done. This was certainly the feeling with the Bramare Marchiori Vineyard Malbec. Here the fruit flavors seemed to be lost in a sea of hedonistic oak treatment.
Speaking of hedonism you can’t find a much greater fruit bomb in this world than the Paul Hobbs Cobos. If you need a gift to impress someone this would certainly do it. But it is, perhaps, hard to drink more than a glass. There is only so much jam on can imbibe.
The exact opposite experience is the Nicolas Catena Zapata. Here is a big wine, yet with such refinement and elegance that the experience of finding the bottom of the bottle justifies its price (around $95). Maybe the experience of drinking five regular Catena Malbecs (around $20 – and an excellent value) would equal one Catena Zapata? A question for another night!
My only critique of Catena is the price on the single vineyards. Why price Adrianna and Nicasia at $91 when their composite, winemaker-built-blend (I have met Jose), Catena Alta, is $40 less? For those savvy few not chasing Parker points this means that the better wine – Catena Alta – is half the price its big boy, body-builder-bottle cousins. At around $50 Catena Alta is frankly a steal. And its carbon footprint it smaller to boot!
And while we are discussing steals, if you can find them, Paul Hobb’s lower tier Argentinean stuff, from the Lujan de Cuyo series (around $35? – Jesus Christ buy this in cases when you see it) to the Cocodrilo or whatever-they-have-decided-to-call-it-series (around $20?) are ridiculous values in and of themselves. Note that the Cabernets from these two tiers are stronger than the Malbecs or Merlots. All of Hobbs’ wines are flashy, ripe fruit in your face, smooth rounded out BOMBS. Don’t bother cellaring them past year three. The acid and tannins just aint there. Instead get sloppy drunk with them now. They are the Lay-Z-Boy chair of the wine world and are too much fun for your own good.
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had this a 38 central with dinner tonight. The nose is fruit, acid and loam. The tasting shows a sweet fruit up front to a acidic long tannic finish. This a bold, hearty wine with a big body. Grest with steak, or chops.
I've had this several times since then, a very good malbec
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Well-made industrial scale wine, but less good than I remember other vintages. Black/purple.Cherry/currant attack followed by a slightly "sweet" background of cedar wood leading to a relatively short finish. OK, but lacking complexity.
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Beautiful deep purple color. Mildly earthy nose with traces of berry amidst quite a bit of alcohol. Fairly dry in taste, tart berries, soft tannins, very clean finish. Softened considerably over two hours, with some caramel and violet notes coming out. The silky mouth feel was perhaps this wine's best asset. Young and approachable, just not a lot of "there there".
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Nose of tar, graphite, bay leaf some blackberries. nice, smooth earthy taste with medium finish. Feel hotter than the alcohol indecates. First night was a bit unpleasant but much better the second night 88-89. It could probably go to 90 with some chunk of meat.
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popped and let sit in my glass for 30-40 minutes. Had with skirt steak. Deep dark color. Right from the pour strong nose of Raspberries and cream. On the palate, raspberry and cherry flavors dominate. soft and smooth in the mouth. Could use a tinge more acidity for my taste, but overall a good effort. Would buy again...
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Decanted for 2 hours. Very dark purple color and a young complex fruit nose. Taste of dark berries, blackberries, cherries. Softened a bit over 2 hours and showed more forward light berry fruit and a bit of butter. Moderate tanins and nice finish.
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This is a good wine to share with a wide audience. The fruit is full and lush, mostly of blackberries. Thsi mouthfeel is thick. The oak is prominent, even lending a little bitterness on the finish. I think this will mellow out a bit with 6 months+ of bottle age, but it's made in a style that most people like. I found it a little generic, and prefer a few other entry level malbecs at the same price point or less. 87+
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Nice inky black raspberry color. Raspberry, cherry candy, w/ hint of bay leaf and game on the nose. The pallet showed ripe raspberry, cherry, really nice mouth feel, nice soft tannins on the finish.
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5/8/2020 - Racer117 Likes this wine: 90 Points
A good wine auction purchase.
Still could drink well for a few more years. Modest nose of fruit and tobacco; med. to full body with flavors of blackberry, coffee, earth. Good acidity. Enjoy with or without food.
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2/22/2020 - nfurlong Likes this wine: 88 Points
dark garnet hue; black cherry ganache and cigar box on the nose; well-integrated tannins, black fruit, forest floor. After a day of opening, definitely a pleasure to imbibe.
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8/31/2019 - bacchus wrote: 90 Points
still working on drinking up dusties with longevity estimates prior to 2019. shared with pat at selkirk manor. celebrating the holiday weekend. we have enjoyed this wine since 2009, drinking a bottle every one or two years. it has been fun watching the wine develop and evolve over that period of time. had not enjoyed one of these since last tasted on 9/3/2017. at that time the wine was not fully mature but heavy sedimentation suggested that it might be reaching peak. presently, two years later, some bottle variation is evident in that the sedimentation is less abundant and the acidic spine suggests that the wine still has further to go. in addition, aeration via vigorous swirling in the glass was necessary to fully bring out the fruit components. the wine continues toshow bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. firm structure. still coming together. this remains one of my favorite mid-level argentine malbecs. alas, this was the last of seven bottles so i will not have an opportunity to see how the wine presents in its final stage of development.
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2/10/2018 - victorpb wrote: 89 Points
Decanted and drank from a 6 litre bottle, which still had plenty of life left. Opened up nicely over 6 hours with tones of ripe blackberries and plum.
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9/3/2017 - bacchus wrote: 90 Points
shared with pat at selkirk manor. celebrating the holiday weekend. we have enjoyed this wine since 2009, drinking a bottle every one or two years. it has been fun watching the wine develop and evolve over that period of time. had not enjoyed one of these since last tasted 9/2016. the wine is still robust and continues to show well. notes similar to last time. bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. nice structure. still coming together. heavy sedimentation in the last glass poured. this remains one of my favorite mid-level argentine malbecs. may have the last bottle in about six months since it seems to be peeking.
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9/16/2016 - bacchus wrote: 90 Points
shared with pat at selkirk manor to celebrate the end of the work week. had not enjoyed one of these since last tasted 2/2015. the wine is still robust and continues to show well. notes similar to last time. bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. nice structure. still coming together. the wine continues to show potential for further longevity. may try another one in about six months to see how it progresses.
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4/19/2016 - vinohnd Likes this wine: 92 Points
Starting to show signs of age. Dark, almost brick. Layered, nuanced, gorgeous. Drink up
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12/13/2015 - mark.gularte@gmail.com wrote: 89 Points
Lovely dark color, berries and cherries comprise much of the taste, nicely blended after this amount of time, still showing some tannin, so it may age even a bit longer.
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6/14/2015 - Botte515 wrote: 87 Points
Likely waited too long to drink this. Decanting wasnt enough to bring the best out of it. Just ok at this late stage.
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2/7/2015 - bacchus wrote: 90 Points
shared with pat at selkirk manor to celebrate the end of the work week. had not enjoyed one of these for a while. came back to it as i was concerned about longevity lacking notes from others since the new year. the wine continues to show well. bright cherry fruit but with an elegance as described by the pros. also taste a little coffee. nice structure. still coming together. will wait six months before trying another one.
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9/29/2014 - Zweder wrote: 86 Points
Weekly tasting group #136; A fully blind test. (@ The factory by JdB): Ripe dark berry fruits in the bouquet. On the palate dark berries and cherries, firm acidity and still slightly sticky tannin. Ready now and the next few years.
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2/8/2014 - Terr Likes this wine: 88 Points
I was somewhat surprised that the age did not have a negative on this wine. It had a very fruit forward taste with along with a very smooth and full aftertaste. I would not hesitate in drinking this wine with this age again.
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12/31/2012 - PVJC wrote:
Decent malbec, similar notes as before. Had a glass left on day 3 which I liked more than the previous 2 days...tannins had become a bit more fine grained and the wine was drinking well, will decant the last bottle when we have it.
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9/15/2012 - bacchus wrote: 90 Points
shared with pat at selkirk manor. paired with roast beef. this remains one of my favorite mid-level argentine malbecs. tasting notes similar to last year. the wine has changed little except that it seems to have developed even more grace and the nose is a bit more pronounced. having survived its teenage years, i suspect that the wine continues to have a bright future. there is some debate among others regarding projected longevity. i will remain on the conservative side for now and watch closely. the fact that it has done well so far, suggests to me that this is one of catena's more successful vintages.
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5/23/2012 - G & J Wines wrote:
- Flavours of black pepper.
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4/29/2012 - Buick455 wrote: 89 Points
This was really nice today, think is is at its peak.
Medium dark red opaque color. Black currant, black fruit on the nose.
Palate is black fruit. medium finish
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12/23/2011 - CWilliam wrote: 89 Points
Tasted from a 6L - I was worried this would be dead but it was actually quite nice. Like prior taster noted, clearly at its peak but this was enjoyable with beef spedini. Dried cherry / cranberry, some nice vegetal undertones on both nose & palate. Medium body with medium finish. 89+/-
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12/9/2011 - bacchus wrote: 90 Points
shared with pat at selkirk manor. this remains one of my favorite argentina malbecs below $20. it is amazing that the producer can obtain such quality from a product that is produced in large quantity. the wine remains clean, fresh and vibrant 5 years after the vintage. there is ample fruit as well as firm structure. components are well balanced providing a graceful mouth feel. i have no doubt that this wine will become even more attractive with a few more years in bottle.
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11/27/2011 - PlanetX wrote: 87 Points
Lovely greeness that is interesting
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11/20/2011 - kennyg wrote: 83 Points
Pleasant on day 1 with tannins a bit strong. Had hoped day 2 would be better but while tannins muted, a new unpleasnt vegetal element on the finish is now present. After visiting mendoza recently and enjoying some truly unique and tasty Catana Zapata malbecs this one is not fully up to the improved standard
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11/3/2011 - wine4me2 wrote: 88 Points
Deep integrated dark fruit blends seamlessly with creamy oak. This wine gives you a long finish with a pleasant acidity on the palate. A great mouth-feel as others have noted. Not a bad choice for under $20 bones.
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7/26/2011 - bin905 wrote: 89 Points
Ripe, juicy, dark fruit, spice, oak, pepper, and tobacco flavor. Mouth-filling palate. Ample tannins on the finish.
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5/11/2011 - QuidnuncWS wrote: 88 Points
A near-perfect pairing with teriyaki meatballs
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3/26/2011 - fatherdamo wrote: 87 Points
i tasted this wine before i bought a bottle and i recall then thinking that it needed a little time to balance itself out. that is still the case. it has good acidity, good fruit (mainly blackberry), a touch of chocolate and coffee, some good tannins, and an excellent finish. but it isn't in balance yet. i wish i had another bottle to see how it is in a couple of years. ho hum.
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2/14/2011 - vinniemontoni wrote: 88 Points
Decanted through Vinturi and left in decanter for 30 minutes, however it seems very closed. Nose of berries and a hint of coffee and you can certainly tell that the alcohol is strong. Palate is medium weight with red fruits and cassis leading to a medium to lengthy finish with a hint of oak. I can't decide whether I like this or not. Somehow there is nothing wrong with it but at the same time nothing grabs my attention. have had these before with good results but maybe it's past it's prime. Will update if it gets better with air.
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2/11/2011 - kmicho wrote: 84 Points
Agree with Viini-Viren's comment on 1/6/11. This is somewhat simple for the price of this wine. The nose was good with a lot of moss, wet leaves, and peat. Not much in the way of berries or fruits. More damp vegitation. But that was it. As for the palate, it was very indistinctive. Just a decent "wine" flavor. Nothing terribly distinctive. Unfortunately, nothing justifying this price either. I think I've had a previous vintage which was far better. This drank more like a $15 Chianti - light and simple. I expected a lot more complexity in this wine. I've enjoyed the Catena wines many times in the past, but the simple ones at half this price drank the same way. I guess I'm very disappointed because I expected much more complexity, depth, nose, and flavors from this bottle. I can buy many Zins at this same price point which display far more depth and character. Same with a number of Cabs.
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2/3/2011 - ctjared wrote:
Consistent with previous notes.
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1/22/2011 - christophee wrote: 80 Points
Dark violet, ruby with medium/lite viscosity in the glass. Closed nose of cherry pie, spice and varnish. Soft, round cherry compote on the palate. Secondary spice (cinnamon) with some noticeable heat. Medium, slick finish. Drinkable, but not much character…leaning towards fake.
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1/10/2011 - Canoetrip wrote: 88 Points
- Garnet color with medium forming legs and aromas of dusty and has flavours of butterscotch and vanilla - Very enjoyable. Thought it would be past, but still full flavor, rich. Last bottle.
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1/6/2011 - Viini-Viren wrote: 90 Points
Simpler than previous vintages. Needs time (1-2 h) to open. Full bodied fruity with berries and nicely tannic. Not much nuances here. very straight forward.
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12/28/2010 - abu wrote: 86 Points
Valbella
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11/25/2010 - yeti575rider wrote: 84 Points
First thing you notice is how dark purple this wine is. Somewhat interesting blackberry/currant flavors at first but ultimately this is hidden under too much oak. Just OK.
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11/22/2010 - nickbb wrote: 92 Points
Very dark, with notes of bramble, blackcurrant and tobacco and cedar. Slightly sour plum, with good depth of fruit. Integrated tannins and lovely fruit and tobacco finish. Lovely stuff.
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11/21/2010 - SMagowan wrote: 90 Points
Opened and aired for 30 minutes. There is a hint of menthol in the smell and overripe berries. On the palate it is quite smooth with a gentle finish. Very nice with blue cheese or gouda.
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11/16/2010 - will2wine wrote: 87 Points
Dense and tightly wound for an entry-level Malbec, this one could use either some more bottle age or, as another reviewer suggested, a big ol' steak. More points for structure than immediate enjoyment, but this could yield more pleasure in another couple of years.
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11/14/2010 - abu wrote: 90 Points
Neighbours
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11/8/2010 - ctjared wrote:
Big nose of black fruit, spice and a touch of earthiness. Well balanced and a very long complex finish. Solid.
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10/28/2010 - Nutty08 wrote: 89 Points
Brilliant red-purple color. Pleasant smoky nose with coffee and toast. Palate is smooth and round, with little perceptible tannin and seemingly low acidity--but never jammy or roasted. Some currants and red berries on the palate and a medium length toasty finish. Nice and well made, but rather forgettable. Possibly slightly past peak, but drinking well enough.
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9/18/2010 - wineward wrote: 87 Points
Dark, black currant fruit tightly wound initially with a little heat. Very good, definitely should have let it sit longer, but I won't buy anymore.
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8/22/2010 - mkaminski wrote: 88 Points
Very dark in colour. In the nose aromas of cherry pit, forest berries, prunes with hints of smoke. On the palate intensively fruity, with good structure, distinct acidity and pleasant tannins.
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7/25/2010 - SpoochMan Likes this wine: 90 Points
Opened at a large BBQ so no detailed notes. But this was very nice. Great body and mouthfeel. The fruit was still lively but this was smoother and better integrated than a year ago. Last of my '06s; hope the 07s are as good. This wine is a very reliably good QPR.
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7/5/2010 - GGinSF wrote: 88 Points
Great body. The wine feels substantial in the mouth. Dark fruit with a touch of mocha. At peak (or possibly just past it). This is not a long-term ager. A favorite and very good value. Note: The Bodega Catena Zapata (not this one that says "Catena" in large letters, nor the "Alamos") is technically a better wine. Better vineyard selection, more expensive wood regimen. However, sometimes I prefer the "Catena" because Malbec is fresher with less new wood.
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6/27/2010 - mfp wrote: 87 Points
Very good. Still life in the bottle.
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6/20/2010 - VHJV wrote: 87 Points
This wine is starting to show some mature aromas and was more delicious than a year ago. I bought several to try how these will age and at the moment everything seems to be getting better. There is however a certain ruggedness to this wine and the alcohol comes through a little bit. So, less refined than comparable Bordeaux, but powerful for the cost. Will wait for the next one for about a year.
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6/16/2010 - DoubleMagnum wrote: 88 Points
Nose was funkier than usual. Signs of aging?
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6/10/2010 - nogohawk wrote: 86 Points
Drank over 2 nights - definitely starting to lose its edge; medium ruby color, lighter body than usual, still a nice malbec - possibly badly aged bottle (picked up last week in Balt.)
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5/28/2010 - degrandcru wrote: 86 Points
Dark blackberry like color. Cherry and blackberry on the nose. Starts fruity, but quickly changes to tart and dry in the mouth. Mredium, pleasant finish. Great with steak, a little tart and heavy to drink by itself. Overall a very decent Malbec.
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5/17/2010 - golfhawk wrote: 90 Points
Opened up after one hour. Had some chocolate and blackberry and a great color. Could a couple more years but it is drinking great now. I will decant the next bottle.
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5/16/2010 - tarheel17 wrote: 89 Points
nose: bright, but at the same time sappy. ash, plum, blackberry and bits of chocolate
palate: balanced fruit, tannin and acidity. delicious. short finish, but a fantastic wine for $16.
some notes indicate that it seems to be on a downslope, which I can't comment to this since this is my first bottle. but if I saw this around, I would buy, buy,buy for drinking right now.
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5/13/2010 - wgb wrote: 84 Points
as others have noted, this wine has seen its peak;decent food wine but no complexity; fruit is pretty tame and not going anywhere; would steer to the Alta
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4/30/2010 - nogohawk wrote: 91 Points
VG malbec - been drinking a lot of 2007 and opened this for comparison - WOW; dark purple color with loads of berry and mocha - long finish; much heavier than 2007
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4/9/2010 - pcaulfie wrote: 88 Points
Fruity onset with a spicy aftertaste, smooth finish. Nice wine.
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4/4/2010 - saints050505 wrote: 88 Points
solid everyday malbec, good for grilling, spice and fruit, not going to wow you, just a good wine
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3/21/2010 - kavitha and nick wrote: 89 Points
lots of fruit forward flavors and opened up with time. Probably better to decant. Pretty solid wine for the price.
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3/18/2010 - sichuanpeppercorn wrote: 89 Points
Not bashful, fairly fruity, but enough balance to be legit and fairly delicious. A nice bottle for the price with solid QPR. I have been happy with this producer time and again for the value.
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3/14/2010 - 8count wrote: 90 Points
Nice, but not distinctive as earlier stated.
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3/6/2010 - starkravingmad wrote: 93 Points
Smooth bodies, medium. Tates of fruti and spice. Outstanding
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3/2/2010 - rfras Likes this wine: 90 Points
The wine looks Ruby colored.
It smells like Raisin, and Plum.
It tastes like Plum, and Oak.
The body is Medium.
The wine is textured Round.
The wine finishes Medium.
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2/21/2010 - awise45 wrote: 86 Points
Chalky and a bit sour; deep purple color, lots of jammy aromas.
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2/18/2010 - jshufelt wrote: 87 Points
Pop and pour. Serviceable, but compared to past bottles, never quite got to that dusty, smoky pleasant place I remember from previous bottles. If you have any left, start drinking them now.
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2/6/2010 - pavel_p wrote: 89 Points
Full bodied, long finish. Nice
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2/5/2010 - redknife wrote: 87 Points
Solid daily drinker. Medium body with red fruits, violets and light smoky finish.
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1/31/2010 - ctlee wrote: 86 Points
A very good wine for $20 however I would recommend paying a 2X and getting the Catena Alta.
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1/27/2010 - iphilgoood wrote: 86 Points
Not a bad wine but not up my alley I guess.
Intense purple color. The nose is jammy black fruits all the way. The mouth is jammy black fruit all the way. This wine covers the entire palate with sugary fruit. Not much acidity. All little young maybe.
Not a food wine at all.
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1/24/2010 - thebonnydooner wrote: 89 Points
Very nice but not that distinctive. Deep colour, lots of blackberry, plum and currant currant fruit. Juicy, with soft dry tannins, soft currant and cherry fruit. Decent finish.
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12/19/2009 - Yagil wrote: 86 Points
(sextet at Hugo's) generally a simple daily wine. promising aroma for this wine. more basic in taste - but ok. good value for money.
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12/18/2009 - Life At Your Leisure 🍷 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dark violet, purplish color with a focused nose expressing dark berries. The body is rich and full-bodied, with hints of black cherry, tobacco and leather. Tannins have not integrated that well as of tasting, but carries a structure that is built for medium-term cellaring. The finish is decently long with loads of mineral flavors. Doesn't perform quite as well as the '05 yet. Drink from 2010 to 2017.
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12/14/2009 - nickbb wrote: 89 Points
Inky dark colour. From the bottle and for the first night this wine was closed, with hardly any attack. The second night it really came out of it's shell, with stewed prunes. Silky smooth on the palate and some very good acidity. The finish was good and I would say this was up there as far as Malbec's go, but it needs some open time before it shows it's worth.
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12/1/2009 - Yiannis wrote: 89 Points
Very dark purple. Expressive nose with black cherry, sour cherry, black pepper, flowers and freshness. Full-bodied with dense, fresh fruit, firm tanins and high acidity. Long finish. From now to 2015.
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11/27/2009 - Barbalax wrote: 78 Points
Quite dense wine with chewy fine tannins and long aftertaste. But the Jim Beam vanilla kills everything for me. The nose is vanilla toilet cleaner.
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11/24/2009 - PVJC wrote:
Solid bottle of Malbec, reasonable value at $18 although also nothing too special about it. Paul liked it a little more than Jenn who thought it was average.
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11/15/2009 - nogohawk wrote: 90 Points
VG malbec - more body than 05 Seghesio Zin opened first
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11/8/2009 - mkaminski wrote: 90 Points
Very dark, blackberry-black colour. Aromas of forest fruit with dominant notes of blackberry. On the palate well-built, full-bodied, balanced, soft and smooth. Very fruit-forward. Nice smooth finish.
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11/1/2009 - PIntag wrote: 85 Points
Nice fruity Malbec. Good weight and smooth mouthfeel, but somewhat simple in aroma and flavor. Nothing offensive here, but did not show as well as all of the other Malbecs we were tasting with it, including a $6 bottle of Torrevieja.
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10/18/2009 - PVJC wrote:
Good wine, need food to go with it. Dark, inky, a little dry, starts out a little lighter/fruitier and then becomes drier/denser/heavier.
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10/17/2009 - Pheffernanvt wrote: 85 Points
Very nice, well-rounded Malbec.
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10/16/2009 - Viini-Viren wrote: 88 Points
Disappointing vintage. Gone is the velvety, plumlike txture from 2005. Instead lots of fresh fruit and acids. Not to my liking. Maybe decanting could help?
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10/9/2009 - 123fakest wrote: 89 Points
a bit simple but some nice fruit. very drinkable
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10/3/2009 - bacchus wrote: 90 Points
lsmft round firm and fully packed. this is a substantial wine and is reasonably priced, resulting in excellent qpr. this is one of the better mendoza malbecs priced under $25. nice red fruit along with a hint of chocolate. this wine is youthful in both color and taste. can easily go to 2011 if not longer. will try to resist opening another one until then.
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10/2/2009 - ludwigbpm wrote: 87 Points
Nez assez simple de chocolat noir et de mures. Une certaine pureté dans le fruit et de la fraîcheur pour un Malbec argentin, mais finale un peu courte et fluide. Pas le deal du siècle à ce prix.
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10/1/2009 - Snoman wrote: 89 Points
Nose and palate opens very green and vegital, like a young Bordeaux, but also like a young Bordeaux there's a backbone of balance, fruit and earth that should evolve for some time to come. Not a pleasurable wine now at 4 years on harvest, but I'll tuck a couple away and try them again in 2014-2015 or so, expecting some real magic....I'd put money on a 92-95 score in 5 years.
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9/29/2009 - nycts74 wrote: 88 Points
Lovely deep purple color. Mouthfeel was a bit thin on the front but had some nice structure in the back. Big fruit notes balanced nicely with the tannins and acid. A very tasty wine.
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9/13/2009 - jshufelt wrote: 89 Points
Notes largely consistent with previous bottles. Pop and pour. For the first hour, this was quite tart, but with enough air, recovered to previous form. Next time, I'd give it an hour in the decanter before serving.
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9/2/2009 - jamieirving wrote: 84 Points
Made from 100% Malbec, this wine shows lovely baked plum, blackcurrant and cassis characters on the nose. The palate is rich and smooth - well integrated tannins and a lovely long finish.
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9/1/2009 - edbev wrote:
deep inky red. dark fruit nose, cassis, tobacco, chocolate - sweet stone fruits, hint of spice and integrated oak. long.
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9/1/2009 - Capt M wrote: 84 Points
I like the purple tone of this wine when it first comes out of the bottle, but once in the glass, it is much more ruby tone, dark and dense. The oak is obvious on the nose, but then also some barnyard, some moss, and a tiny little strawberry. This wine has seen its peak already. It is still full bodied, very rich and bold, but the fruit isn't too much there anymore. The oak is. It is creamy and jammy. The finish is kind of spicy; also hot. Dark chocolate. Perhaps a barbeque type wine.
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8/31/2009 - Schwengan wrote: 84 Points
Too jammy to be great and not particularly complex.
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8/29/2009 - KevinMc wrote: 90 Points
So good for the money I can barely believe it. Cedar and intense berries on the nose. A hint of funkiness here, but it's not unpleasant. Round and full on the palate, with berries, leather and spice. I will most definitely be looking for more of this.
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8/22/2009 - Cabfrancophile wrote: 84 Points
Have to wonder how many cases/production runs there are of this wine. This wine has little to do with other notes. Meaty, black pepper, bell pepper and spice on the nose. Classy nose. But the palate lacks the suppleness of good Malbecs. Not a typical Malbec problem--acid is too apparent. Oddly not a fruit bomb. Soft tannins, though. Linear acid-driven flavors without much of a finish. Nice wine, but not delivering above its price point.
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8/20/2009 - pjaines wrote:
Excellent value and very typical of its type - £10 here gets you a complex Argentinian Malbec with classic notes of deep fruit, chocolate, grippy tannins and dark fruit that will not smother the palate. What is more, compared to Clos de Los Siete from Rolland and friends this is cheaper, more complex, goes better with food and is much much better, "FACT!!!" to quote David Brent from The Office. Forget Rolland and his generic offerings, this is where the smart money is.
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8/15/2009 - nogohawk wrote: 91 Points
VG malbec
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8/15/2009 - bigdogflow wrote:
Shannon's 40th Birthday Celebration (San Antonio, TX): 85-89
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8/15/2009 - chanote44 wrote: 87 Points
A fair Malbec. Slightly astringic with bright red fruits and sediment. Does not have much of a finish. I've had far better at this price point.
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8/9/2009 - jonysan Likes this wine: 88 Points
Was very tight when first opened. As time progressed, the flavors came together and tannins eased up to make it a very enjoyable wine.
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7/30/2009 - rbmorse wrote: 89 Points
Cherry, rasberry, light tabacco. Smooth. Nice nose right after open. Fruity but subtle. Little tanic, with sediment (filter next time). Medium bodied but short finish. Too dry and tanic to drink on its own. Works well with red meat. like to see how some more time works with the balance
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7/30/2009 - csu.viticulture wrote: 88 Points
Very tight on first pour. Eventually gave way to rich, earthy plum, cassis, and a touch of vanilla on the nose. Milk chocolate, anise, and leather eventually emerge. Smooth tannins on the opulent and refined palate. Good balance overall.
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7/18/2009 - chd850 wrote:
N: sweet dark fruit, cherry, dirt
M: very soft tannin and acidity. lots of sweetness.
Anytime, anywhere red.
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7/15/2009 - Lessthanzero wrote: 88 Points
This wine will not offend anyone, or at least not many. It manages to conceal the extracted nature of many Malbecs (and indeed many from this winery). At the same, it never goes anywhere interesting. For the money (not that it was expensive), you should get better wine.
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7/4/2009 - wahoo70 wrote: 88 Points
Popped and poured with grilled ribeye steaks. Tart at first, with flavors of black and bing cherries, plums, black pepper, notes of leather, chocolate and a touch of vanilla; smooth, integrated tannins, and bright cherries on the long finish. It became less tart and a bit darker with time, and it went perfectly with the steaks. Not as lush and flavorful as I was expecting. I'm thinking it would have been a lot more enjoyable with hours of decanting or with another day or two after opening.
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7/3/2009 - Wino from Michigan wrote: 87 Points
Nice Malbec - but nothing special
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7/2/2009 - drycab wrote:
Very tart fruit, almost citrus/grapefruit dominated with no real redeeming features. Does clean the palate, isn't offensive, but doesn't have a bunch going for it. My first Malbec and this seems a little young. Will let the other bottle sit for a year or so.
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6/23/2009 - Medivl wrote: 89 Points
Consistent with previous note
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6/18/2009 - andtheodor wrote: 88 Points
Deep purple. Aromatic dark fruits, black cherries, distinct spice character.
Nice resonant fruits, supple tannins & spice. I agree with the note below; the richness is akin to a roasted beet. There is a harmony here between the sweet Malbec character and the gentle oakiness and Zin spice. Drank some low-end Mendoza Malbecs alongside it and they really accentuated the strengths of this wine. Great paired with pasta at dinner and cherry-chili dark chocolate for dessert.
I paid $21 but have seen it for $15 which would make a great QPR. I would rate this even higher but my wife's tempering opinion lands it at 88 pts.
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6/13/2009 - benjiharvey wrote: 90 Points
Very good malbec. perfect steak wine with nice dark fruits, good length an a much more mature taste than 06. Frankly a snip at a tenner a bottle.
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6/12/2009 - J-Sho wrote: 90 Points
Dark in color. Fabulous nose that just burst with chocolate covered cherries, boysenberry, raspberry. Palate is moderate in body and fruit notes continue. Nice tannins and a nice zip of acidity. Not overly complex and maybe a bit sweet but overall well balanced and satisfying. Finishes a bit short.
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6/7/2009 - JWG wrote: 80 Points
Perhaps this wine is much better than my rating, but the oaky, spicey extreemely fruit bomb quality is against my taste interests.
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6/7/2009 - il_diavolo wrote: 88 Points
a nice wine that could come from anywhere "new". dark, purple with obvious oak influence and some chocolate undertones. all in all just a slight disappointment that all typicity is eroded by the oak treatment but a pleasant drink nonetheless.
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6/6/2009 - ihavezinned wrote: 90 Points
nose of dirt, dusty mocha, & dark fruit. flavors of cherry, leather, spice. soft tannins and mouthfeel. good, long finish. great QPR @ $17
pair with grill steak, tri-tip, or burgers.
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6/3/2009 - bcbeane4 wrote:
Dark color, fruity nose, medium body, oaky, smooth, chocolaty finish.
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5/29/2009 - AZ Cat wrote:
(1) This is really tasty - an excellent QPR. Well balanced, nothing oaky about it, very nice fruit.
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5/26/2009 - KevinMc wrote: 89 Points
Drinking very nicely. Balanced and full, mellow and round. Fantastic value for $15.
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5/26/2009 - chayward wrote: 88 Points
No formal notes, but really interesting Malbec. Went great with grilled steak.
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5/25/2009 - dirtyharry wrote: 88 Points
Just short of outstanding. A little thin, lots of smoke, not much on finish
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5/24/2009 - jshufelt wrote: 90 Points
A bit more blackberry and smoke than I remember from last summer, but otherwise consistent with previous tasting notes. This wine demands grilled meat.
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5/17/2009 - pgm wrote: 87 Points
I expected more, to be honest, because of the critics' consistently generous notes. What I taste here is a fairly priced wine, an ok value, but it doesn't perform past its price point. Not terribly aromatic, some black and blue berries on the nose. Initially seeming thin, the palate does turn on with currant and blueberry, with stony minerality. The finish is almost its best feature, with cocoa and powerful, persistent fruit, but there are also some bitter tannins there.
Maybe it's expectations set too high, but I just can't be excited about it even though it's a nice enough wine.
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5/14/2009 - Medivl wrote: 89 Points
Very deep dark colour. Black berries, beetroot, spice and later raisin nose. Also spice and Black berries on the palate. Fine balanced acidity. Overall very harmonic wine, ready to go.
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5/11/2009 - nzinkgraf wrote:
Catena Wines (Waterford): very aromatic. gunflint?? is that sulfur? juicy raspberry fruit. pretty mellow tannin (vintage about to flip??). not so burly. easy wine. bottle variation.
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5/9/2009 - dzitt wrote: 88 Points
A moins bien paru cette fois-ci...
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5/8/2009 - vinole wrote: 87 Points
A malbec on the more elegant and restrained side, but lacks the mid-palate and roundness I look for and finishes thin, a little sour, and rather short. Starts off nicely with raspberry and plum, but then tails off. Medium acidity with some oaks nuances. I will try the wine again tomorrow and see if it benefits from extended air as many suggest.
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4/28/2009 - dzitt wrote: 90 Points
Le vin est rubis tirant beaucoup sur le violacé. Le nez est très aromatique. Le fruit noir est très présent, de même qu’un peu de fraise cuite. Le bois est à peine perceptible. En bouche, encore là le fruit prend une belle place et en offre pas mal. Le fruit noir (bleuet et mûre principalement) s’allient avec des notes d’épices (muscade et cardamone) pour mener à une belle finale où après 2 heures, j’ai senti un soupçon de café au lait. Aucunement le vin est surboisé (le bois est même très intégré et offre un support en arrière-plan tout au plus), de même que l’alcool est très digeste et ne chauffe pas ni ne rend le vin désagréable.
Je suis un peu subjugé face à ce vin puisque j’étais convaicu que j’aurais préféré le cabernet-sauvignon. Enfin, ce dernier (le cab), offre une plus belle finesse, tandis que ce Malbec offre un fruit pur et agréable, un plaisir immédiat. De beaux produits quoi !
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4/26/2009 - SimonG wrote:
Ful colour. Quite an enticing nose of blue and black berries. Palate fruit-led in a creamy, rounded, low-tannin, moderate acidity way. Ripe and full, steak-friendly. Towards the end of the evening and the bottle this had lost some of the obviously rounded creamy fruit and the acidity was starting to feel a little out of kilter. Respectable hearty food wine, lacking in some complexity **1/2
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4/15/2009 - nzinkgraf wrote:
gravel and thinly veiled blackberry to the nose. there's a bit of a hike in the woods thing to this wine. rustic would be too easy. on the palate. lean and mean. well not so mean. you know what i mean?
dark cherry starts to jump out of the nose. is it black cherry Kool-Aid? so expressive on the nose. tar, blacktop, and gravel all in my mouth. how's that?
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4/14/2009 - fingers wrote: 88 Points
Very dark ruby hue, 95% saturated, minimal dusting at the rim. Needs lots of airtime. After 4 hours I get some Malbec character but it's very low key and could easily pass as Syrah. There is a little note of the butterscotch, burnt caramel, and dirty grease that I like in a Malby's aroma but this is quite tame under the high heat. Palate is juicy dark plum and prune, blackcurrant and the finishing note also gives a peek of some varietal character with nice oak treatment. However, the alcohol is suffocating the rich smoothness of the fruit. Medium-big body and nice acidity balance, lots of soft tannin that will help it improve - if the alcohol can behave. (5+10+16+7) = 88
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4/12/2009 - LarryInBrookline wrote: 84 Points
I haven't yet connected with Argentinian Malbec. You expect it to be intriguing but it is undistinguished.
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4/11/2009 - Charlesaf3 wrote: 79 Points
Perfectly fine but insipid - balanced with no obvious flaws but no obvious charm. Made me miss the dense delicious malbecs of the 90s. Robert agreed - do not buy again
Seems to be the victim of a lot of grade inflation.
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4/6/2009 - hutch wrote: 88 Points
Walker's Newport Tasting (The Spiced Pear): Rich sweet fruit. Clean and tasty. 87-88
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4/5/2009 - Renegade wrote: 90 Points
Dark purple color and full bodied at 13.9% alcohol. Aromas of dark fruits, plums, carroway and earth. On the palate it was of dark berry fruits, plums and graphite. This wine would be better paired with food than on its own, it has the right acidity to go with an appropriate meal. To be better on its own, another couple years in the cellar would help it out.
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4/4/2009 - Left wrote: 90 Points
Grapey
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4/3/2009 - al-Zabba wrote:
Elegant fruit, so pure and delicious. Blackberries cradle you with enough structure to keep you feeling safe and secure in the arms of one of my favorite malbecs. (All of my favorites of which happen to also be Catena's.)
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3/31/2009 - tairanosaurus wrote: 89 Points
Black fruit, fennel and wet dirt on the nose. In the mouth, plum and cranberry fruit. Minerality and acidity on the finish. Needed at least an hour out of the bottle.
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3/31/2009 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
The nose is allot more complex than the Felino. More lavender, honey, grapey appely. Lighter, lifting palate. Youthful. Crisp, clean, and very lively. What a superb wine at $19.
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3/30/2009 - depdoc wrote: 87 Points
Raspberry and plum on the nose. We consumed it right away and may have made a mistake. I note Karmapa's description and will give my second bottle a better chance with a much longer decanting.
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3/29/2009 - jsums wrote: 90 Points
Deep ruddy purple color. Full nose of rich blackberry and plum accented by funky damp earth (swamp grass?), mocha, paprika, and a floral/citrus overtone. Interesting and attractive. Elegant structure on the palate: rich, dark wild berries with leather, graphite, and a focused core of zingy citrus acidity. Moderate/lighter tannins. Very good length. A little mocha latte on the finish. Beautiful stuff.
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3/28/2009 - snaff wrote: 88 Points
Carmel and candied fruit on the attack, but finishes with the classic muscular red fruit of the malbec. Definitely more fruit than earth or leather, but a solid enjoyable wine. Good value.
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3/24/2009 - KristinL wrote:
Great every day drinker. Good acidity makes this a very food friendly wine. We consumed over 3 days. Wine was sealed with vacu-vin when not being drunk. Wine definitely tasted better on second day. Held it's own on third.
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3/23/2009 - DesMarteau wrote: 90 Points
concentrated fruit forward nice drink.
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3/21/2009 - pandresgi@gmail.com wrote: 88 Points
Juicy with lots of dark fruit
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3/19/2009 - Karmapa wrote: 82 Points
13.9% ABV - Malbec, assumed 100% - tasted on 03/19/09 at GWT #4
One of four wines tasted on this night, the most unique and a real surprise the day after.
Lively purple hue, a pleasure to see, this bottle was opened and decanted. Earthy barnyard stink that lasted through the several hours of the night's tasting, somewhat disturbing and hard to get accustomed to. Bright, crisp and forward berry taste, this bottle needed a full hour to show some smoothness. Nose did not improve at all by the second hour, and although taste on the palate had evened out, decided to put under vacuum for the next day ...and my, what a change the following night! The entire barnyard stink now gone and in its place a subtle bouquet of far-off crushed grapes, very nice. And on the palate now a clean young wine with just a faint hint of the previous night's berry overtones; a real pleasure to now drink and wishing we had more than half the bottle to enjoy.
Comments were that this Malbec needs 3-4hrs of decanting before it shows the beauty within, most likely due to its youth. Enjoy now or probably within 5yrs.
Started much below 80 but worked its way up; let's call it 82 with an upside.
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3/16/2009 - mreinitz wrote: 88 Points
Dark berry and plum. Enjoyable well-made wine.
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3/13/2009 - Leandro Novais wrote: 85 Points
Basic malbec wine of Catena. A little spicy, with a good sensation of dark fruit, like blackberry. Tasted also chocolate. Good acidity. Perfect with a pizza or napolitana pasta.
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3/8/2009 - peternelson wrote: 87 Points
Wine HOuse Advanced: Deep color; blkberry, rasp, cassis, currant leaf; choc, mint, jam, liquorice, spice, pepper; med. bod, bit low a’s & fin.; very good for this, except where noted, grt flavors. This changes my opinion on Malbec.
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3/8/2009 - gigabit wrote: 86 Points
An easy-drinking malbec; nothing complex, but relatively enjoyable. Plum, some candied fruit, and a touch of mineral. Light-to-medium bodied. Short finish. A decent way to start the evening.
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3/3/2009 - Bob in NC wrote: 86 Points
A fair malbec but better ones for the money. Restrained nose with dark berrys lurking above a mild earthy floor that leads to a smooth but short finish with mild tannins. A generally boring malbec, especially compared to the 2004 Familia Zuccardi Malbec Q we just had.
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3/1/2009 - Bandit wrote:
Very rich with dark fruit and hints of mocha and blackberries. Amazing value...
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2/28/2009 - EJZ wrote: 87 Points
Very solid example of a Mendoza Malbec. Deep in color, berry and plum on the long lasting palate.
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2/26/2009 - vancouvermatt wrote: 88 Points
Floral nose, with dark berried fruit backed by a sour/acidic backbone that threw the wine off balance.
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2/22/2009 - pjaines wrote:
Cracking value. Paid £10 and you get a good quality wine here. Deep colour, on the nose perfumed violets, dark fruit - intense aromas. In the mouth a superb mix of dark fruit, some oak but good depth and a nice balance with the tannins. Just the right side of full-bodied - this doesn't get too cloying or fat. There is nice balance here. Very very good for the price. An excellent example of Malbec.
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2/17/2009 - LPskeleton wrote: 89 Points
Tobacco blueberry and mulberry on the nose. Deep and oak driven. On the palate very sexy texture with chocolate and black fruits. Simple but delicous. YUM
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2/15/2009 - golfhawk wrote: 91 Points
Very rich with dark fruit and hints of mocha and blackberries. Will definetly look for more of this.
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2/9/2009 - DukeDrew wrote: 88 Points
At $16.99, this is my new cellar defender.
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2/6/2009 - keelegl wrote: 87 Points
Really dark and concentrated at the moment. After some time, the palate opened up a bit to give some dark berries and mocha but finishing a little stewed with a tough wall of tannins. Might need some short term cellaring to come together.
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1/31/2009 - wertyu wrote: 89 Points
Straitforward, balanced fruit, tannin and acid - great pour
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1/29/2009 - Wink wrote: 89 Points
Popped and poured. Drank with dinner and after by itself. Dark purple color. Nose of vanilla, blackberry and a whiff of graphite. Medium bodied palate with refreshing acidity, sweet dark fruit and youthful tannins. Decent length. A very good, well-balanced wine. Not quite outstanding. Addendum: this wine was better and had more fruit on the palate on day 2: maybe 90 pts .
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1/28/2009 - GrandeSerataFuori wrote: 86 Points
Initially more impressed with this. Faded after 4 or 5 hours of air. Blackberry and chocolate. Medium tannic structure.
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1/26/2009 - GrandeSerataFuori wrote: 87 Points
Dark, blackberry profile. Nice tannic structure. The 2006 malbecs are really a treat. Not at great value at $22, but a good enough wine.
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1/25/2009 - scott davis wrote: 88 Points
Purple and black in color, with leather and dark fruit aromatics. Blue and black fruit, violets, and wet earth essences show on the palate. Nicely balanced, yet fairly straightforward. Drinks clean, with a crisp medium-length finish.
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1/23/2009 - richard.stevens wrote: 89 Points
Inky black/purple colour. Nose of blackcurrant and leather. Black fruits in the mouth, good acidity and soft tannins - very smooth. Good length, around 20 seconds.
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1/20/2009 - Biglama wrote: 89 Points
rood paars, diep donker fruit, licht wat aards, niet zo heel uitgesproken, smaak is stevig met fruit, wat body en ook wat stroefheid, misschien heeft de wijn nog even nodig, kwam later wat mooier over
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1/19/2009 - Laurence wrote: 88 Points
Needs time to open up. Great with steak. Not good with curry (over powered). Smooth. Has the potential to last but then ends a bit short.
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1/18/2009 - nwbackpacker wrote: 84 Points
Meh. Highly drinkable wine, but highly boring too. Very smooth, but lacks complexity in any way. Exceedingly light on tannins, which is fine if there is some complexity there, but there isn't. This red wine is suitable for those that don't really like red wine, if that makes any sense to the reader. At $17 (from Costco) it's not a good value at all.
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1/18/2009 - DukeDrew wrote: 88 Points
Great juice at $16.99. Dark, rich fruit with somewhat of a tannic finish (more in tjib's camp then the rest). Not overly complex, but a nice bottle of wine at the price to go with steaks.
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1/15/2009 - tjib13 wrote: 87 Points
poured out of the bottle
nice reddish purple color
brambly, a bit of earth on the nose
dark fruit flavors
tannins on the finish
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1/15/2009 - ksmith wrote: 88 Points
Ordered off the wine list at Paladar. Pop and poured, immediately accessible dark fruits, soft tannins. Full bodied, not likely a wine for the ages, but very drinkable right now
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1/13/2009 - ruscabfan wrote: 90 Points
Pronounced berries, soft and smooth. Very pleasant right after opening. Great wine for the price!
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1/11/2009 - beeches wrote: 87 Points
Soft tannins with abundance of fruit tones. Medium body with disappointing finiish. Very easy to drink even now but don't think it will improve with age.
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1/2/2009 - Foodmaster68 wrote: 89 Points
Fully drinkable upon opening. Smooth, lush, low tannins. Perfectly paired with a meat lunch, not overly full of alcohol. Well-made wine, easy to quaff. Nice balance of fruit.
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12/31/2008 - MasLaPlana wrote: 88 Points
Very fruity, strawberries and other red berries with a hint of herbs and liquorice. Still young, but ready to drink even now. Wine has silky tannins an is good value for money.
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12/28/2008 - neuchgolfer wrote: 90 Points
With Anna, Alex, Krassi and Kalin
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12/27/2008 - gdbarton1@gmail.com wrote:
very dark purple, opaque. Rich black fruit nose. Medium black fruit, dried black fruit, short dry finish
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12/26/2008 - GA wrote: 89 Points
12/08 Floral nose - medium-bodied - vibrant fruit - chocolate coffee finsih - structure and complexity - ready now - ban use some time. 89 pts.
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12/24/2008 - nogohawk wrote: 90 Points
Christmas Eve w/ Terry - lots of berry VG malbec
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12/17/2008 - kenthargis wrote: 89 Points
Great price/value ratio. Certainly a distinct flavor profile that is rich considering the $20 price tag. Would get again. Had with grilled steaks.
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12/13/2008 - Salute wrote: 84 Points
Very shallow, thin wine. Not much there, even for this price.
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11/30/2008 - Capt M wrote: 89 Points
Dark ruby red, quite brilliant. Young wine of expressive and intriguing nose, actually quite beautiful nose, with notes of red and dark cherries, then followed by caramel taffy, and ending with scents of green tobacco leaves. Elegant transition on the palate, delicious creamy texture, with gorgeous transition from mid-palate to end consisting of dark rich caramel notes, cardamon, clove, and spices. Appreciable structure that makes you wonder where this wine is headed in four or five years of cellaring. Tasty notes of dark chocolate. Very good quality fruit and beautiful integration of it in its fine transition. This wine is gorgeous to drink by itself.
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11/24/2008 - *Vine* wrote: 90 Points
Popped and poured. Deep ruby hue. Tight at first, it took about 2 hours for this wine to fully open and reveal nice aromas of black cherry, earth, violets, and stone. Medium-plus body, a rush of ripened black fruits, ripe currant, a touch of dried fruit, plus a distinct minerality all work together in harmony on the palate, the tannins firm and slightly chalky. The fruit is bright and vibrant on the nice finish due to refreshing, almost heightened acidity derived from Argentina's unique climate......in fact, this would be a great red to pour for the acid lovers. Due to the tannins, acidity, and fruit, this wine should have a nice life ahead of it.
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11/11/2008 - micki wrote: 88 Points
Took about 1.5 hours to open up. Initially verey tannic then fruit and strong oak, long finish. Very enjoyable
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11/7/2008 - LelouchViBritannia wrote: 90 Points
Catena Zapata's Premium wine tasting (North Vancouver): Big bold character with spicy pepper, cassis, coffee and plum. Strongest finish of all red wines tasted from the alamo/catena range.
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11/3/2008 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Nice spice and rounded mid palate. Much better than the 2005 that I remember.
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10/21/2008 - afalk wrote: 88 Points
Deep ruby to purple color. Cherry, and a hint of licorice on the nose. Palate is full and dominated by black fruit. Nice tannins. Moderately long finish.
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10/6/2008 - marchdreamer wrote: 90 Points
This was a nice Malbec. My cousin loved it and insisted on finishing the bottle much to my disapointment. Good value.
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10/5/2008 - markmontgo wrote: 88 Points
Not bad...for a Malbec.
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9/20/2008 - noseb4palate wrote: 83 Points
Deep purple colour. Sweet cherry with a hint of cassis on the nose. On the palate the black fruit dominated but overal structure a little fine boned and short on length. This wine may need more air than we gave it, because the wine certainly beefed up with better length as we got to the end of the bottle.
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9/7/2008 - jshufelt wrote: 90 Points
Consistent with previous tasting notes. Those three bottles didn't last long...
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9/4/2008 - D H Grant wrote: 88 Points
Deep, dark ruby purple; on the nose, kirsch and a brighter berry will give way to kirsch, licorice and cassis; The palate is full and a very classic balanced texture reminiscent of a Bordeaux claret. Nice tannic structure which suggests that more time (another year or two) in the cellar will be rewarded. Classic and even juicy style of malbec which needs about 2 hrs. to open. Subtle but balanced and present finish.
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8/23/2008 - jshufelt wrote: 89 Points
Consistent with previous tasting notes.
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8/17/2008 - jshufelt wrote: 89 Points
Consistent with previous tasting notes.
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8/10/2008 - jshufelt wrote: 90 Points
In the glass, dark red fading rapidly to black at the core. On the nose, akin to a Napa cab, with a touch of that dusty Malbec funk. On the palate, dark fruit with structure, melting away to soft tannins on the moderately long finish. A great choice to accompany grilled meat; worked very well with flank steak and chimichurri.
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8/2/2008 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Works well at its price point but does seem to be loosing a bit of steam from the old days.
These wines were all tasted together in one night over a period of 10 hours.
2006 Clos La Coutale Chaors, 2006 Catena Malbec, 2005 Catena Cabernet, 2005 Catena Alta Malbec, 2004 Bramare Marchiori Vineyard Malbec, 2006 Bramare Lujan de Cuyo District Cabernet, 2005 Paul Hobbs Crossbarn Cabernet, 2004 Nicolas Catena Zapata, 2004 Cobos, 2004 Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard, 2004 Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard.
In general the feeling was the all of the Catena wines, from top to bottom, are stylistic, elegant, well made and classy to drink. Paul Hobbs’ wines are certainly not chump change though. They are by far flashier and sometimes run the risk of becoming over-done. This was certainly the feeling with the Bramare Marchiori Vineyard Malbec. Here the fruit flavors seemed to be lost in a sea of hedonistic oak treatment.
Speaking of hedonism you can’t find a much greater fruit bomb in this world than the Paul Hobbs Cobos. If you need a gift to impress someone this would certainly do it. But it is, perhaps, hard to drink more than a glass. There is only so much jam on can imbibe.
The exact opposite experience is the Nicolas Catena Zapata. Here is a big wine, yet with such refinement and elegance that the experience of finding the bottom of the bottle justifies its price (around $95). Maybe the experience of drinking five regular Catena Malbecs (around $20 – and an excellent value) would equal one Catena Zapata? A question for another night!
My only critique of Catena is the price on the single vineyards. Why price Adrianna and Nicasia at $91 when their composite, winemaker-built-blend (I have met Jose), Catena Alta, is $40 less? For those savvy few not chasing Parker points this means that the better wine – Catena Alta – is half the price its big boy, body-builder-bottle cousins. At around $50 Catena Alta is frankly a steal. And its carbon footprint it smaller to boot!
And while we are discussing steals, if you can find them, Paul Hobb’s lower tier Argentinean stuff, from the Lujan de Cuyo series (around $35? – Jesus Christ buy this in cases when you see it) to the Cocodrilo or whatever-they-have-decided-to-call-it-series (around $20?) are ridiculous values in and of themselves. Note that the Cabernets from these two tiers are stronger than the Malbecs or Merlots. All of Hobbs’ wines are flashy, ripe fruit in your face, smooth rounded out BOMBS. Don’t bother cellaring them past year three. The acid and tannins just aint there. Instead get sloppy drunk with them now. They are the Lay-Z-Boy chair of the wine world and are too much fun for your own good.
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7/15/2008 - OregonWineGeeks wrote: 92 Points
had this a 38 central with dinner tonight. The nose is fruit, acid and loam. The tasting shows a sweet fruit up front to a acidic long tannic finish. This a bold, hearty wine with a big body. Grest with steak, or chops.
I've had this several times since then, a very good malbec
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7/7/2008 - ocattorney wrote: 84 Points
Nose was real tight, even after decanting. Tastes like burnt strawberry jam. The finish was tannic and short. Not real impressed with the wine.
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6/27/2008 - DesMarteau wrote: 79 Points
Dead fruit...a bit of anise, glyceryn...slightly sour. not good and not what i expected.
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6/20/2008 - Jan Schultink wrote: 87 Points
Well-made industrial scale wine, but less good than I remember other vintages. Black/purple.Cherry/currant attack followed by a slightly "sweet" background of cedar wood leading to a relatively short finish. OK, but lacking complexity.
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6/14/2008 - finlero wrote: 83 Points
Beautiful deep purple color. Mildly earthy nose with traces of berry amidst quite a bit of alcohol. Fairly dry in taste, tart berries, soft tannins, very clean finish. Softened considerably over two hours, with some caramel and violet notes coming out. The silky mouth feel was perhaps this wine's best asset. Young and approachable, just not a lot of "there there".
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5/28/2008 - Bellissimo wrote: 89 Points
Dark purple color. Berries on the nose (raspberry and cherry). Ripe berries on the taste. Soft tannins.
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5/23/2008 - dke wrote: 89 Points
Nose of tar, graphite, bay leaf some blackberries. nice, smooth earthy taste with medium finish. Feel hotter than the alcohol indecates. First night was a bit unpleasant but much better the second night 88-89. It could probably go to 90 with some chunk of meat.
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5/17/2008 - Coupe 60 wrote: 88 Points
popped and let sit in my glass for 30-40 minutes. Had with skirt steak. Deep dark color. Right from the pour strong nose of Raspberries and cream. On the palate, raspberry and cherry flavors dominate. soft and smooth in the mouth. Could use a tinge more acidity for my taste, but overall a good effort. Would buy again...
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4/17/2008 - Adonisd1956 wrote: 90 Points
I really enjoyed this wine. It definately needs to breathe for an hour or better, once it opened up it was great.
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4/6/2008 - vine20 wrote: 88 Points
Decanted for 2 hours. Very dark purple color and a young complex fruit nose. Taste of dark berries, blackberries, cherries. Softened a bit over 2 hours and showed more forward light berry fruit and a bit of butter. Moderate tanins and nice finish.
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3/30/2008 - hutch wrote: 87 Points
This is a good wine to share with a wide audience. The fruit is full and lush, mostly of blackberries. Thsi mouthfeel is thick. The oak is prominent, even lending a little bitterness on the finish. I think this will mellow out a bit with 6 months+ of bottle age, but it's made in a style that most people like. I found it a little generic, and prefer a few other entry level malbecs at the same price point or less. 87+
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2/8/2008 - Cheshire wrote: 90 Points
Nice inky black raspberry color. Raspberry, cherry candy, w/ hint of bay leaf and game on the nose. The pallet showed ripe raspberry, cherry, really nice mouth feel, nice soft tannins on the finish.
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