Malbec: The Ultimate Summer Cookout Wine! (A lush, fruity, inexpensive crowd-pleaser)

Show Notes

Episode 124: Malbec: The Ultimate Summer Cookout Wine!  00:00

Hello! And welcome to The Wine Pair Podcast. I’m Joe, your sommelier of reasonably priced wine, and this is my wife and my wine pairing partner in crime, Carmela. And we are The Wine Pair! 

If you are new to our podcast, here is a quick orientation! Each week, we explore a different wine varietal or blend—like Pinot Noir or Bordeaux or Malbec — and dive into what makes it unique, special,and worth learning about. Our goal is to help you expand your wine knowledge in a fun way that normal people can understand. We also taste and review 2-3 wines under $20 each, and share our scores and recommendations to help you find great wines without breaking the bank. So, thank you so much for joining us; we promise it will be worth your time! And, we are proud to say that Decanter Magazine calls us fun, irreverent, chatty, and entertaining. [AI Generated]

Carmela, we are back from our trip to Spain, recovered from our illness, and now that we are in June, we are getting ready for eating al fresco - which means outdoors - and we are also entering cookout season, so we thought now is the perfect time to talk about what people some consider ultimate cookout wine, and that is the red wine, most notably from Argentina called Malbec.

Malbec is a great, inexpensive red wine that has a lot of flavor and richness, so from a bang for your buck perspective, Malbec can be a great wine. And, incidentally, although we are not going to drink it today, the Costco Kirkland Signature Malbec is a wine we highly recommend. But there are other reasonably priced Malbecs you can find that will do the trick, and we’ll talk about that more today, and hopefully we found a couple today that we really like. 

You may wonder why we are calling Malbec the ultimate cookout wine. Are you wondering? Well, we’ll start with the basics here. Malbec is a wine that comes from Argentina, and we are firm believers that wine and food are meant to be paired, and pairing a wine with a food from the country it comes from is a no-brainer. 

It just so happens that the classic food of Argentina is Asado, which is grilled meat. Now, let me tell you. The folks from Argentina eat a lot of meat. In fact, they are one of the largest consumers of red meat in the world, and although we think of cowboys on horses rounding up cattle as a thing in the US, the cowboy culture in Argentina is real. In Argentina, they are called Gauchos. 

I am not going to spend a ton of time on it today, but suffice it to say that Argentina could more than give Texas a run for its money in terms of cattle and cowboys.

But what I want to talk about today for a little bit is Asado, this famous grilled meat from Argentina. Asado comes from the Spanish word asar which means to grill - I bet you didn’t know that. Argentinians like their meat cooked well, and by that I mean well done, so although grilling is different from barbecuing - which people often confuse, like they confuse all sparkling wine with Champagne. To barbecue means to cook over low heat for a long period of time, and often not over an open flame but rather by indirect heat. Low and slow. Grilling is done over high heat for a short-ish period of time and most often over an open flame. You got it? 

With Asado, it is kind of a tweener, between grilling and barbecuing. Argentinians like to cook large cuts of meat, and I mean large, like a quarter of a cow, over open flames for a longish period of time. And it is delicious - at least that is what I hear.

All that being said, the perfect wine for grilled meats cooked over an open flame is supposed to be Malbec. 

Now, if you go back into the depths of our episodes, you will see that we have done an episode on Malbec before, but that was about a year and half ago in episode 43, more than 80 episodes ago, and that episode came at the end of the summer, so we thought we should revisit the wine because we are coming to the beginning of the summer here in the northern hemisphere. Because this is a very good summer wine and worth revisiting.

So, we’ll talk a bit more about what Malbec is and why it is a great cookout wine, and we have two Malbecs from Argentina that are reasonably priced and should be easy to find that we will taste and review to let you know if we think you should run out and buy them  . . . 

But first . . . we have to do our shameless plug.

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And, as we do every week, we’ll tell you someone we think you should recommend The Wine Pair Podcast to so we can keep growing listeners. This week, we want you to recommend us to anyone who loves a cookout and loves to eat grilled foods outside in the summer with friends and loved ones with a nice glass of wine. 

ARTICLES and LINKS

• https://arecotradicion.com/en/noticias/the-asado-the-star-of-argentinian-gastronomy/#:~:text=In%20fact%2C%20there%20is%20one,preparation%20is%20an%20absolute%20art. 
• https://caminopampa.com/gaucho-the-argentina-cowboys/#:~:text=and%20resilient%20cowboys.-,Lifestyle,wild%20grasslands%20of%20the%20Pampas. 

Topic: WTF is Malbec? 10:24

So, Carmela, let’s learn a little more about just what the F Malbec is and why we think you should be drinking it more often this summer. 

First, Malbec is a red wine that originated in France, where it is more commonly known as Côt, and where it has been used primarily as a blending grape, especially in Bordeaux wine blends from Cahors. However, Malbec did not and does not grow super well in France. 

When it was brought to Argentina, though, in the 1860s, it really found its home, and part of that is because it is a grape that loves heat and high altitude. The grape was brought to the Mendoza area of Argentina, which is its most famous wine making region, where it took off, and there is a ton of Malbec made there now. I will also mention that, unlike with a lot of European wines that are known by the region they are from, Malbec is the name of the wine and the grape that it is made from.

Malbec can be considered the great wine of Argentina, a wine that the people of Argentina are very proud of. 

Malbec from Argentina is said to taste different than Malbec made in France. In the cooler climate of France, the wine can be lighter in body and more tart. However, in Argentina, it is a full-bodied wine with lush flavors - I like that word, lush, what does that mean to you? And it is considered an easy drinking and easy to like wine. Like me. Easy to like. One of the things that people love about it is that it is not a pretentious wine, and is generally not expensive, but it has a lot of the characteristics of a more expensive wine. It is big bodied, like me, high in alcohol, also like me, is a deep red color, and has rich flavors like blackberry, black cherry, leather, cocoa, and tobacco. 

In addition to having rich fruity flavors, it is also often found to have medium, mellow tannins, which makes it well balanced for most people. One article I read said that Malbec offers a beautiful balance between fruit and acidity. I find that can sometimes be the case with Old Vine Zinfandel as well, which we will do a Costco Challenge on in a few weeks. 

In fact, one of the articles I read to research this episode, which you can find a link to in our show notes, said that this wine was discovered by regular wine drinkers rather than experts. Which we love. It is the perfect wine for this podcast - delicious, affordable, good with food, and a bit off the beaten path in comparison to wines like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The other thing that I love about it is that it tends not to be overly oaked. So while it does spend some time on oak, the flavors of the wine come from the grapes and careful winemaking, not from the overuse of oak which is too often the case with American wines. 

Because of this, its flavor profile, its rich taste and mouthfeel, its low cost, and the fact that it is not overly oaked, it makes an awesome cookout or summer party wine. Generally, Malbec is what we call a crowd pleaser. Because it is not overpowering, but is still rich, it appeals to a large number of wine drinkers. And it also comes across as a great casual wine that can be glugged without people having to stand around, slurping wine like dicks and trying to act like wine snobs. It is the kind of wine that people drink and then say, hey, this wine is really good, what is it? 

If you are having a party with friends outside this summer, we highly recommend you look for a Malbec as a wine to serve. I would also consider it to be a great everyday wine, one that you can afford and enjoy every day. If you are having a party with friends inside, find something else to drink. I kid. I kid.

One final note, some suggest that you should serve Malbec at just below room temperature, and that you want to decant it to let it breath a bit, and you want to serve it in a glass with a bigger bowl so you can really smell the aromas of the wine. 

So, on that note, I think it’s time to learn a little more about the specific wines we are drinking today. Whaddya say?

ARTICLES and LINKS

• https://wineinsiders.com/blogs/wine-101-types-of-wines-grapes/malbec#:~:text=To%20recap%2C%20Malbec%20is%20a,flavors%20of%20cocoa%20and%20plum. 
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malbec 
• https://winefolly.com/deep-dive/what-is-malbec-wine/ 
• https://usualwines.com/blogs/knowledge-base/malbec-wine#:~:text=Malbec%20grapes%20are%20small%20and,balance%20between%20fruit%20and%20acidity. 

Malbec Wines We Chose for This Episode 16:28

As usual, the wines we have chosen for this episode are under $20, and all of them should be relatively easy to find because I bought them all at wine.com. Malbec is a very easy wine to find in any wine shop or wine section at a store. And, again, we do recommend the Costco Kirkland Signature Malbec as well which is really inexpensive and usually plentiful. 

The first wine we are going to drink is called Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec, and we have the 2022 vintage, which was given a 90 rating from Wine Spectator and Vinous, and was called a Best Value for Wine Spectator. And for a wine that is about $10, that is fantastic. 

As the name implies, it is organic, and it comes from the Mendoza area of Argentina. This wine has a tech sheet, which I love, and I have a link to it in our show notes. One of the fun things to remember about wines made in the Southern Hemisphere for those of us on the other half of the globe is that wines in Argentina are harvested in March rather than in October. They also talk about how little rain the area gets, which stresses the vines, and is actually really good for grapes. Grape plants do not like to be overly wet, and either do I, and less water means the plants work harder on the fruit than on the leaves. 

This wine is actually fermented in stainless steel, so they are unoaked, which is a bit unusual I think, although the winery says this is a bit of a trend with these wines. The winery also says that this is more of a French style, but because of that, I expect this wine to be a little fruitier and fresher tasting, a little more acidic, and not having the oaky characteristics of tobacco or vanilla. 

It is also a screw cap, which we love! Again, perfect for a cookout!

The second wine we are going to drink is called Baron Edmond de Rothschild Aguaribay Malbec and is from the 2021 vintage. This one was a little more expensive at $14.99.

A little different from the last wine, the winery separated 30% of the juice and aged it for 12 months in second-use French oak barrels, and the rest was in stainless steel. So a couple of notes on that. First, the bit of oak on a portion of the wine will add some more intensity to the tannins and add some other flavors like cedar or smoke or vanilla. The fact that they use second-use French oak means that the oak touch will be light-ish. French oak is lighter in flavor than American oak, and the more an oak barrel is used, the more subtle the flavor will be. New American oak barrels will, as we say, punch you in the face.

Now, as the name implies, the winery was funded or founded by a company of one of the Rothschild heirs named Edmond. This is a famous family that a lot conspiracy theorists like to talk about, and if you are into that sort of thing, I really don’t know what to say, but the family is from Paris and made their fortune as bankers. The only reason I bring it up is because some of the most famous and expensive wines in the world are the Château Lafite Rothschild from Bordeaux France which come out of the gate at thousands of dollars per bottle. Putting the name Rothschild on the label can, for some people, lend an air of value and sophistication on the wine, but it is a much, much, much more reasonably priced wine at under $20. 

But, I think that is enough information - let’s get to drinking! We’ll take a quick break and be right back. And, if you have these wines or similar wines, drink along with us!


ARTICLES and LINKS

• https://domainebousquet.com/en/wine/premium-malbec/ 
• https://www.empirewine.com/wine/baron-edmond-de-rothschild-aguaribay-malbec-2020-h51470/#desc 

2022 Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec, 2021 Baron Edmond de Rothschild Aguaribay Malbec Wine Tasting, Pairing, and Review 22:57

Wine: Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec (Click here to find this wine on wine.com. Affiliate link)
Region: Argentina, Mendoza
Year: 2022
Price: $9.99 (although I have seen the price go up recently)
Retailer: wine.com
Alcohol: 14%
Grapes: Malbec
Professional Rating: WS 90, V 90

What we tasted and smelled in this  Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec:

• On the nose: Perfume, rose, dark berry, blackberry, plum, dark cherry, fruity, juicy, earthy, clay, dirt, herbal
• In the mouth: Fruity, rich plum and cherry flavors, lush, easy drinking, medium bodied, dangerous red wine, juicy

A definite crowd-pleaser, a great party wine

Food to pair with this  Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec: Burgers, grilled foods, charcuterie board, appetizers, main course, nachos
 
As a reminder on our rating scale, we rate on a scale of 1-10, where 7 and above means that we would buy it, and 4 and below means that we are likely to pour it down the sink, and a 5 or 6 means we are likely to drink it and finish it, but we are probably not going to buy it. 

 Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec Wine Rating: 

• Joe: 8/10
• Carmela: 8/10

Wine: Baron Edmond de Rothschild Aguaribay Malbec (Click here to find this wine on wine.com. Affiliate link)
Region: Argentina, Mendoza
Year: 2021
Price: $14.99
Retailer: wine.com
Alcohol: 14%
Grapes: 100% Malbec
Professional Rating: V 91, JS 91

What we tasted and smelled in this Baron Edmond de Rothschild Aguaribay Malbec:

• On the nose: Smoky, vegetal, dark color, wooden box, not a ton of fruit, hotter 
• In the mouth: Tart, sharp, tannic, sophisticated, some complexity

Food to pair with this Baron Edmond de Rothschild Aguaribay Malbec: Fajitas, carne asada, spicy red meat, baked potato on the grill, roast with potatoes, grilled foods, meatloaf and mashed potatoes

Baron Edmond de Rothschild Aguaribay Malbec Wine Rating: 

• Joe: 7/10
• Carmela: 6/10

Which one of these are you finishing tonight?

• Carmela: Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec
• Joe: Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec

Taste profiles expected from Malbec   34:21

• General 
  • Wine Insiders: Red plum, blackberry, black cherry, vanilla, sweet tobacco, cocoa, violet flowers, leather
•  Domaine Bousquet Premium Organic Malbec
  • Winery: On the nose, it presents intense aromas of blackberry with notes of red and blackcurrant and plum. The mouth highlights notes of ripe plums with soft and elegant tannins.
  • WS: A fresh, fruity and exuberant style, offering hibiscus, blood orange and mountain herb aromas and flavors on a medium-bodied frame, with a swirl of berry jam and chalky acidity chiming in around fine tannins.
• Baron Edmond de Rothschild Aguaribay Malbec
  • Winery: intense aromas resemble ripe cherries and raspberries that combined with the slight vanilla, give elegance and fineness to this wine. On the palate, it appears soft and silky, with round tannins.
  • V: Purple in hue. The fruit-forward nose features notes of plum, cherry and violet with hints of mountain herbs. Juicy but skinny and flavorful, the wine's supple tannins make for a lingering finish.
  • JS: A deep and young wine saturated with color, with a pure expression of black cherries, herbs, raw spices and violets. Rich and juicy on the palate with a medium to full body and some tense, fine-grained tannins. Fleshy mid-palate with a more linear finish.

Responding to Text Messages and Questions 36:13

Like I mentioned early on in the episode, we have started to get some questions coming in from listeners via the text message link that you can find in our episodes now in your podcast player. If you have questions for us, we’ll answer them directly in our podcast, and we will also answer them in our monthly newsletter. In our June newsletter that just came out, we answered these questions as well, and we thought we’d answer them in this episode as well for fun. Send us questions - we love hearing from you!

I'm not a chardonnay fan even though I've drank it for years. I like white Boudreaux as a great substitute. Do you have a favorite white grenache? How do you feel about white grenache compared to white Bordeaux?

So, we are really happy you are not a Chardonnay fan, because as you know we think most of what is sold on the market today is overly oaked swill. We will always say to look out for unoaked Chardonnays. We generally really like White Bordeaux because it usually uses one of our favorite grapes - Sauvignon Blanc - along with another grape we like that doesn’t get enough press called Semillon.

We are not well versed enough yet in White Grenache to say what is our favorite, but we did good give ratings - 7 out of 10 - to the two White Grenache wines - or Granaxta Blanca - that we tried in the White Grenache episode, and you can find those on wine.com. So, give them a try and let us know what you think.

Also, what about Rose? I just bought a Tavel, a darker rose. 🙃 I have found it very hard to find Roses that I enjoy. I find them to be too metallic and rough or too fruity. I'm hoping this Tavel will be a winner. Have you tried it?

Rosé is a tricky one because it is a style of wine and not a varietal, which I think trips people up. So, you need to know what grapes are in your rosé. We have really liked rosés made from Pinot Noir as well as from Nebbiolo. They tend to be less sweet and nicely acidic and rounded. But I think a place to start is to choose the rosé based on the red wines you like.

I did look up the Tavel wine and their rosé is a Rhône blend, focused on Grenache, Syrah, and Cinsault. This should be a nice wine, but expect it to be a summer wine, with flavors like watermelon and crunchy red fruit. We have never tried it, so we are curious to hear what you think.

Outro and how to find The Wine Pair Podcast 39:11

Ok, so, Carmela, it’s time for us to go, but before we do, we want to thank you very much for listening to us - and if you haven’t done so yet, now would be the perfect time to subscribe to our podcast and also a fantastic time to leave us a nice rating and review on our website or Apple podcasts or other podcast service - and it is an awesome and free way to support us and help us grow listeners.

We would also love to hear from you about a wine you would like us to taste and review. You can leave a message for us on our website thewinepairpodcast.com and you can join our email newsletter there, too, or you can always email us at joe@thewinepairpodcast.com. And tell us some things you want to hear us do, or not hear us do!

And, follow us on Instagram so you can see pictures of all of these wines we are tasting and reviewing.

Alright, with that, we are going to sign off, so thanks again, and we will see you next time. And, as we say, life is short, so stop drinking shitty wine.

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