Agata's Wine Blog

Tasting Potluck Sweet Malbec

Name: Potluck

Variety: Sweet Malbec

Region: Mendoza
Country: Argentina

Year: 2010

Price: $7.95

The Vintage Cellar Review: Deep red brilliant with violet hints. Complex, fruity, and predominant red fruits. Easy to drink, round with persistent sweetness, very well balanced with sweet tannins.

My Review: The first thing I notice is the chunks at the bottom of my glass, which are unappetizing. It smells like some spices that you might rub onto a meat before cooking it, or like a fig sauce that people make in a savory way. It’s sweet and smooth and has a taste that reminds me of pomegranate, though it does have a little bit of a smoky aspect in my opinion.

Tasting Domaine de Grange de Payan

Name: Domaine de Grange de Payan

Variety: Grenache blend

Region: Cotes de Rhone
Country: France

Year: 2011

Price: $8.95

The Vintage Cellar Review: Intensely spicy and precise, with lively red berry flavors and a hint of black pepper. The Grenache, which makes up the majority of the wine, is deeper and more powerful, offering cherry and black raspberry qualities lifted by zesty minerality.

My Review: The smell of this wine is not fruity, but more of a salty smell, but a clean smell. It’s already making me imagine a peppery spicy taste. This is what I imagine a hunk of dry ham would taste like, but I don’t know since I am a vegetarian. It’s a little bitter and earthy, yet not in a dirty way. It lacks smoothness, and burns on the swallow. I feel somewhat like I’m drinking liquid potpourri and it’s dry.

Tasting Tinto Figaro

Name: Tinto Figaro

Variety: Garnacha

Region: Calatayud
Country: Spain

Year: 2009

Price: $6.95

The Vintage Cellar Review: Figaro is 100% Garnacha, made from a selection of the best grapes grown in the oldest vineyards. While not truly an “oaked wine”, a short stay in oak barrels provides a nice spicy flavor boost. Bright violet. Dark berry and cherry aromas show a jammy aspect. Supple and gently sweet with good lift to its black raspberry and boysenberry flavors. Smooth and broad on the finish, leaving behind a hint of spiciness. Extremely easy to drink and an excellent value.

My Review: A nice red color, smells more of cherry and red currants. At first it seems like it will be sweet when it touches the tip of your tongue, but then it feels very dry when it stays in your mouth. It actually has an overwhelming feeling of cork bits in my mouth, like the cork is in there just sucking all the moisture out of my mouth and someone is rubbing a dull sandpaper in there. It’s not too fruity, some blackberry feel to it, and not too much spice but there is a hint of it.

Tasting Maipe Malbec Rose

Name: Maipe

Variety: Malbec Rosé