Sherbrooke Sips with R&R: Argentina
Welcome to the first edition of Sherbrooke Sips with R & R (otherwise known as Rosanne and Richard). Every week we will write about some tasty wines and a few spirits, as well. We want you to not just have a glass and learn a little along the way, but we want you to have fun. Yes, there will be a tad of technical speak, but only a tad.
Now, if you could only read about the wines well, that would be no fun. You will actually get to taste the wines. No, not virtually… in the flesh. The wine that we write about this week will be available at Sherbrooke Liquor on Wednesday, February 3 from 4:00 to 7:00 PM for you to come by and have a sip. So every Wednesday afternoon come by and have a chat with either Richard or myself and have a sip of the featured product. You never know, you might find a new favourite or two.
Okay, so here we go…
For our first week we are travelling to one of the hot New World wine countries… Argentina. Over the past couple of years, we have seen an influx of Argentinean wines. There has been a wonderful selection of Syrah, Malbec, Torrontes, to name just a few. We decided for our first wine we would sample a Syrah. Luigi Bosca Syrah Reserva 2006. This particular vintage from Luigi Bosca was given 90 points by Wine Spectator Magazine.
Luigi Bosca Wines are the pride of a fourth generation family owned winery in Mendoza, Argentina. The Arizu family planted their first vines almost one hundred and ten years ago. They have been on the forefront of cutting technology ever since.
The Arizu family has adopted some of the “most beneficial Principles” of Biodynamics. What is Biodynamics? “Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming with homeopathic composts that treats farms as unified and individual organisms, emphasizing balancing the holistic development and interrelationship of the soil, plants, animals as a self-nourishing system without external inputs insofar as this is possible given the loss of nutrients due to the export of food.” (Source - Wikipedia)
For example: They grow olive and chestnut trees so the vines are part of a bigger system and they “co-exist” and are “harnessed by other species”. That is just a very small part, but it will show you that they care about taking care of the vines and all that surrounds them.
Now, on to the wine…
This 2006 Syrah has been aged in oak for nine months. Six of those months were in French oak and three months in American oak. The winery recommends that if you plan to cellar the wine, a maximum of eight years would be optimal. Having said that, that doesn’t mean the wine cannot be enjoyed now, because it positively can be savoured right away. We know this, as we certainly have enjoyed a glass or two (okay maybe three) on more than one occasion.
When you pour the wine, you will notice the deep rich purple colour. This will give you an insight into the aromas and the taste of the wine to come.
Some of the wonderful aromas you will notice will be black plum, black currant and laurel (bay). You may even notice a hint of chocolate and a bit of spice. As soon as you taste this wine, you will notice what a massive wine it is. The tannins are very firm and you will detect that spice right away, along with lots of black fruit.
Food pairings…
If you like red meat, you will be pleased that this big Syrah will work with many different manners of cooking beef. Whether you roast, BBQ (steaks or burgers) or stew the beef, you can’t go wrong. Maybe try the Syrah with grilled sausages, ribs or even some chili (Superbowl Sunday is just days away, after all.)
For those of you who are partial to venison, you might enjoy the Syrah with that too!
Now we can’t forget cheese. Pair it up with a few favourites. Experience it with some hard cheeses like aged cheddar (2, 4 or 6 year old), or parmesan.
Well, that is it for our first wine. I hope you enjoyed reading about it. I am sure our English professors are cringing when they see our sentence structure and dangling participles, but hopefully you won’t grade us on that.
Now.. come by and try Wednesday, February 3 from 4 - 7.
Next week we will be off to Oregon.