Savour the south Warm up at wine fest with Argentina’s big reds Uncorked
By: Ben Sigurdson Posted: 3:00 AM CST Saturday, Jan. 20, 2024

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/01/2024 (925 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In the depths of a January deep freeze, the Winnipeg Wine Festival will offer a taste of warmer climates, with events highlighting wines grown in toastier corners of the globe — particularly from south of the equator.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced organizers to postpone the festival until fall before eventually cancelling it altogether (as they also did for 2021). In 2022 the fest returned in the fall, and was slated to take place in September 2023 before the strike at Liquor Marts forced organizers to postpone again.

So here we are, in the depths of winter, with the festival hoping to heat things up by featuring wines from Argentina. (Interestingly, because the 2023 fest was pushed back to early 2024, organizers are still planning on holding another fest this year, once again in the fall.)

Before the doors open for the big public tastings at the RBC Convention Centre on Jan. 26-27, the festival kicks off with a pair of WineDown ancillary events, each of which focuses on a particular region. On Jan. 23, the Down Under event takes place at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, highlighting all manner of wines from Australia and New Zealand.

On Jan. 24, the Winnipeg Wine Festival moves to The Leaf in Assiniboine Park with an event that will showcase wines from Argentina, this year’s theme region. Along with a handful of white, rosé and sparkling wines, there will be plenty of big, gutsy reds (made predominantly from the Malbec grape, Argentina’s signature grape variety) being poured alongside yet more small bites. Tickets for each of the two WineDown ancillary events, which both run from 7-9 p.m., can be purchased online at winnipegwinefestival.com for $75.

As for the public tastings at the convention centre, they kick off Jan. 26 from 7-10 p.m.; the Jan. 27 matinée tasting happens from 1-4 p.m. and then things wrap up Saturday night from 7-10 p.m. Of the 350-plus products being poured at the public tasting, nearly 100 will be from Argentina, with plenty of tried-and-true crowd pleasers as well as a number of wines that have been brought in special for the fest.

With so many wines being uncorked, navigating such a big festival can be tricky. Planning your attack is the first and most important step: hard copy programs are landing at Liquor Marts this weekend, and the electronic version can be found on the Winnipeg Wine Festival website. Figure out what you want to taste, then work your way through the wines starting with sparklings, whites and/or rosés before moving to reds and dessert wines. Like something? Make a note in your program or on your phone, or take a quick photo of the wine label; products being poured at the festival are available for purchase at the on-site store (while supplies last — and they don’t always).

In addition to wines, there are a handful of other products — coolers, a couple of beers and the like — while the OTR (On the Rocks) Cocktail Lounge features cocktails made on site using products from Beam Suntory.

Tickets for the public tastings are $69.95 plus taxes and fees online, or save the fees and head to your nearest Liquor Mart to pick them up in person. Proceeds from the Winnipeg Wine Festival benefit Special Olympics Manitoba.

Wines of the week

Alamos 2021 Chardonnay (Mendoza, Argentina — $15.24, Liquor Marts and beyond)

Pale gold in colour, there’s a lovely core of ripe red apple, peach and spice aromas here, with secondary vanilla and tropical fruit notes as well.

It’s a dry, medium-bodied white that offers ripe apple, peach and mango notes along with hints of spice and vanilla, modest acidity and a medium-length finish.

A fine example of the grape for the price (especially while it’s on sale — it’s regularly $16.99) and shows off how well Argentina can do with the grape. 3.5/5

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Ocaso 2022 Malbec (Mendoza, Argentina — around $18, private wine stores)

Deep cherry in colour, the brambly blackberry, blueberry and raspberry aromas come with a slight floral and white pepper edge here.

It’s juicy (but dry) and medium-plus bodied, with ripe dark berry flavours and hints of cherry, dark chocolate and black tea showing well, moderate tannins providing grip and a medium-length finish.

A decent example of entry-level Argentine Malbec. Picked up at G.J. Andrews; also looks to be available at The Winehouse. 3.5/5

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Llama 2020 100 Year Old Vine Malbec (Luján de Cuyo/Mendoza, Argentina — $19.50, Liquor Marts and beyond)

Made from 110-year-old vines planted over 1,000 metres above sea level, this Argentine Malbec is deep black cherry in colour and aromatically offers blackberry, earth, violet, plum and subtle charred wood notes.

It’s dry and full-bodied, with jammy blackberry, plum and blueberry notes coming with hints of dark chocolate as well as a meaty note that’s ramped up by the pepper and spice notes on the medium-length finish (it’s 14.3 per cent alcohol).

A grippy, relatively rustic example of the grape; drink now or try in two to three years. 4/5

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El Enemigo 2019 Malbec (Mendoza, Argentina — $34.99, Liquor Marts and beyond)

Deep purple in colour, this Malbec is a joint venture between Adrianna Catena and Alejandro Vigil, and contains eight per cent Cabernet Franc and two per cent Petit Verdot, with all fruit sourced from vineyards located around 1,400 metres above sea level.

It brings deep, complex plum, blackberry, earth, white pepper and spice aromas; on the palate it’s full-bodied and chewy, bringing the above flavours as well as cocoa and raspberry, with fine but firm tannins and a moderate finish.

Elegant yet powerful, it’s ready to drink now. 4.5/5

 

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@bensigurdson