Malbecs and Posh

Argentina’s bold meat-loving drink

By THE SECOND GLASS | BY TYLER BALLIET + CHRIS HALLOWELL

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If you've ever been to Buenos Aires you know exactly what we're talking about. This land of Don Juans, unattainable women and more beef than the American Gladiators locker room has made a French ex-pat their star.

It's called Malbec, and it's a grape that thrives in the sun-soaked, high-altitude vineyards of Mendoza, Argentina. These big, juicy, fruit-laden, earthy wines are perfect for casual sipping, washing down cheese or pairing with Argentina's favorite meal: cow.

Malbec originally came from France's famous Bordeaux region, where it was used as a minor blending grape. This thin-skinned, rather finicky grape grew poorly in France because it is highly susceptible to frost, rots in waterlogged soil and requires lots of sun exposure to ripen. It wasn't until Malbec was introduced into Argentina's near-desert climate that it kicked off its solo career.

So, why haven't you necessarily heard of Malbec? Until the 1980s, Argentina didn't take their winemaking very seriously. Every year, the average Argentinean drinks 26 gallons of "wine," but it was just the cheap plonk vineyards were churning out.

When economic turmoil caused wine sales to drop, the major wineries needed to get their shit together so they could export their wines to new markets. This forced many vineyards to move out of the Stone Age and bring in big name wine makers and consultants from France and California.

In recent years, a lot of high quality wines have come out of Argentina. It's nice to know that even though Argentinean women are way out of our league, anyone can afford a bottle of their tasty vino.

Great Malbec is rich and complex. Carlos Baccaro, winemaker for Salentein Bodega, told us, "The vines are much like women. You don't need to understand them. You only need to love them." Drinking Mr. Baccaro's intensely flavorful Primus Malbec makes us think his lady must be very happy.

While sipping one of these fine wines on a cold New England winter's night, it's hard not to be reminded of the hot, sunny landscape that gave birth to this wine. We just checked Expedia, and plane tickets to Buenos Aires in February are more than $1200. Just be careful that after a few of these bottles, you don't wake up with a mysterious e-ticket and a few thousand new frequent flier miles.

The Second Glass thanks Abe Lerner, wine buyer at Blanchards in JP, for the following Malbec recommendations:

Terra Rossa Malbec ($10)

Alta Vista Malbec ($14)

Susana Balbo Crios Malbec ($16)

All available at Blanchards Wines & Spirits [741 Centre St., Jamaica Plain. 617.522.9300. http://blanchardsliquor.com]

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