2010 Mallea Petit Verdot

Community Tasting Notes (1) Avg Score: 94 points

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  7/27/2015 - Dagalaifus Likes this wine: 94 Points

  The Movie Sideways remains one of my favorite, indie flicks. If you haven't seen it already, it's about two friends -- a broken down, borderline alcoholic school teacher, Miles Raymond and his BFF, a soon-to-be-married "B-list" actor, Jack Cole -- , who taste wine and enjoy the company of women in the Santa Ynez Valley, just north of Santa Barbara. The movie drew much-deserved national and even international attention to a wine producing area that historically and unfairly, has taken a back seat to Napa, Sonoma and Paso Robles. Some would say, it also made Paul Giamatti a movie star, or at least, the most recognizable character actor of our generation. Ultimately, Sideways is more about relationships (platonic and sexual ) and coming to terms with who we really are as human beings, and less about the sophisticated pursuit of tasting fine wine. Indeed, in my estimation, Miles is the ultimate wine "poseur." He infamously denigrates Merlot throughout the film, but then consumes his favorite wine, a 61 Cheval Blanc (a Merlot-Cab Franc blend!) from a paper cup at the end of the film. Prior to unceremoniously, imbibing the Cheval Blanc, Miles waxed eloquently about his favorite varietal Pinot Noir. It "only grows in tucked away corners," and "only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot's potential can then coax it into its fullest expression," he memorably lectures his new girlfriend Maya. His digression on that varietal is, of course, nonsense; especially, when you consider both how many different places (e.g., Burgundy, Carneros, Sonoma Coast, Russian River, Santa Rita Hills, Edna Valley, Alto Adige, Central Otago, Casablanca Valley etc., etc., etc.) that Pinot Noir is now produced, and the increasing number of established and recently minted vintners, who routinely "coax it into its full potential." There is, however, a varietal, that is actually grown "in tucked away corners of the world," and which genuinely requires "somebody who ... understands its potential ... to coax it into its fullest expression." I'm referring to Petit Verdot. Petit Verdot is one of the five traditional red varietals from Bordeaux. It's characterized by small berries and is very late-ripening (ergo, Petit = small and Verdot = greenish). Its dark, tannic juice is sometimes blended in small amounts with the other Bordeaux varietals in France and the New World to provide structure, or as one winemaker described it to me, "seasoning." There's only a handful of winemakers producing single varietal Petit Verdot. Then too, with only one exception, all of the Petit Verdots, which I have tasted, required at least a decade in the cellar to soften the this grape's staggeringly fierce tannins. The "one exception" is the 2010 Mallea Petit Verdot from Happy Canyon, which like Miles' beloved Pinot Noirs, is located in the Santa Ynez Valley. The wine is inky with a razor-thin, ruby halo. If offers redolent aromas and pronounced flavors of blackberry, licorice, oak and cedar and has two-minute + finish. While full-bodied and "weighing in" at a staggering 16% alcohol, I never found the wine overwrought. While it improved significantly with a 24-hr. decant, it is enjoyable popped and poured. One of the best reds that I have had the pleasure of tasting this year, and with a price around $25 a bottle, the Mallea has an outstanding QPR. So far, I've only seen it sold in Ventura, but here's hoping that with this and I'm sure other solid reviews, it will be stocked on the shelves of the better wine retailers throughout Southern California. Addendum, I've seen this wine for only $20 per bottle, which makes it an even greater bargain. Second addendum, this wine was tasted at the FestForums wine tasting at Fess Parker last November. A number of the tasters with very discriminating palates described it as phenomenal. And it's competition (high-end wines from Santa Ynez, Paso and Napa) was really impressive.

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