Buenos Aires Bird Shit Bandits

I know this post is very off topic, but I feel it’s my civic duty to inform as many people as possible about the bird-shit bandits:

If you live in or are visiting Argentina, the following may happen: you are walking down the street, minding your own business and you feel something splatter across your arm or pant leg. It looks white and disgusting and immediately a “good samaritan” will offer to help you clean off your clothing. It may be an old lady, or a young boy. It doesn’t matter. That person is part of a team of thieves scheming to get your money and valuables.

As this first person helps you clean off, a second and even third will try to pick your pocket, take you backpack or otherwise rob you.

I have personally met 4 people–all tourists–who have mentioned that this happened to them. Two of them recognized what was happenening about half way through the scam, and the other two did not and ended up without their wallets.

Please spread the word!

Quelle Horror: Notes From Tonight’s Wine Tasting

Mr. Cavagnaro’s Reserve Malbec rarely shows it’s gorgeous body at our wine tastings in Buenos Aires but tonight was an exception. With stories of bird-shit bandits (no kidding–watch out for this scam if visiting Buenos Aires. Especially at Retiro bus terminal or any subte line. Our two guests tonight along with a good friend of mine have nearly been victims of this horrendous scam. A nice older lady will approach you and tell you you have some schmutz on your jacket or pants and offer to help brush it off. She will say its bird shit. This, or one of her partner’s in crime will actually throw a concoction of milk and birdseed on you and she will try to help brush it off. Then they will try to pick your pocket.) and bullshit in La Boca, I do believe our guests had anything but a shitty time sharing 6 bottles of wine with us.

Cheers to Mike, Howie and Bruce.

Anuva In Company Blind Wine Tasting

On Saturday the Anuva team met for a short and sweet in-company tasting. With only 9 wines the tasting took about 40 min to complete. In the line up was a dessert wine. Pink viscous and aromatic. My initial reaction was Halloween candy, like when I was 10 and returning home with a large plastic pumpkin filled to the brim, devising a plan of how to convince my parents that I should be entitled to eat the entire lot. Others suggested tawny port and caramel. I’ll admit I am often apprehensive to try dessert wines. I tend to prefer coffee with my cake and feel slightly ill at the thought of sucking in any extra sugar.

Many a winery can make good desert wines but also make some horrendous sticky sweet syrups. Saturday night’s sample was made very well. And some people love desert wines, like Stuart who later washed down an entire dulce de leche flan with the wine. Dessert wines can be tricky:

http://www.winedefinitions.com/learningcenter/articles/introductiontodessertwines.htm

By definition a dessert wine refers to all fortified wines, with 16-21% alcohol, sweet or not. This includes ports, late harvests, sauternes, sherry and tirades. Production styles vary in Argentina desert wines are called Dulces or tardias (late harvests). Late harvest wines are difficult to make because the Grapes are left on the vines longer and thus are more susceptible to damage and weather. One of the first rules of fruit growing is that everyday on the vine is a risk. Delaying harvest can be a huge loss. But with some luck the grapes ripen, swell and eventually shrink. Flavors are concentrated and sugar levels are high. (Thus higher alcohol) As a result of the production desert wines tend to be more expensive.

In addition from a seller’s perspective moving dessert wines, which often come in 375 ml bottles can be a burden and throw off shipping. I have tried very few dessert wines. I will leave the wineries nameless, but some of the dessert wines I have tried have been pretty awful. But Saturday’s experience sparked my interest and I would be more willing to try other dessert wines in the future. My approach to wine and everything else for that matter is anything can be good if done right.

If you are interested in trying dessert wines I suggest the following -Try various dessert wines in tasting rooms, most wineries will feature theirs -Consult your local wine shop for a recommendation – Consider Argentina, which has been receiving more attention for its dessert wines. The low humidity in many regions allows the grapes to linger on the vines with less risk. To serve dessert wine -Whites chilled, reds partially chilled -Pair with foods, less sweet than wine. For example almond biscotti or pound cake pair easily with most dessert wines. -Fresh fruit like peaches are another option -Consider creamy cheeses, pates as alternatives to desserts.

Mother Daughter Day Trip to Buenos Aires for Wine

If you had less than 24 hour vacation in Buenos Aires what would you do? Our guests yesterday, Lauren and Joann flew down that morning from the states for a mini-escape. With a bit of luck the two saw open seats for Buenos Aires and jumped at the chance.

With their departure scheduled for 9 pm their time was short, and their goals were high. A whirl wind day of steak, shopping and wine was in the works. When they explained their itinerary I had to ask, were these condensed out of the country excursions a norm? Apparently yes. Joann works for United and every so often takes advantage of the flight vacancies. I became envious at the mention of a past weekend trip to Rome.

While in Buenos Aires for 10 hours, the two had lunch at the famous La Cabrera http://www.parrillalacabrera.com.ar/, a great choice for the ultimate Argentine experience. We were excited to share our wine with them and hear more of their stories. By 6:30 we had their taxi waiting and wished them a safe flight.

Wine For the Ages

Each wine has a life span. Many peak in their youth and are ready to be enjoyed within a year of vintage, like a high school prom queen. Other wines need a little bit more time to smooth out and become less awkward, like the geeky kid in your algebra class, who surprises you 10 years later at high school reunion. Aged wines offer much more complexity as wine makers look for a balance of three components; bright fruit, acidity and tannin, which comes from the grape skins and oak aging. With high amounts of each in a balanced proportion a wine can age into a complex velvety beaut.

As time passes the fruit fades and tannins break down. In most cases if there is little fruit to begin with the wine will seem dull and less interesting. An aged wine will be recognizable by its coloring. As red wine matures the hues lighten into coppers and browns. While white wines become more dark and golden.

Last week at a tasting I tried 3 wines with vintage dates between 1999and 2002. Our host explained that these wines were on their way out and ready to drink now. As we tried three different varietals the structure of each was elegant and round, while the fruit was mellow, subtle and subdued.

For a bit of fun our host ended the tasting with a young fruity Malbec, which stood in stark contrast to the grandfathers in the first half of the tasting. The fruit was bright but the structure seemed more tannic and less smooth. One of the most exciting things about wine for me is how wine changes, from time on a shelf to an hour after opening it. Aged wines are great to explore to understand how wines evolve, peak, fade and die. Check out this Article from Into Wine to learn more about wine aging. http://www.intowine.com/aging-wines-which-age-well

Proper Wine Storage and Heat Wave in Buenos Aires

A heat wave in the dead of winter strikes fear into the hearts of wine makers. Last week Buenos Aires experienced an unexpected spike in temperature leaving all improperly stored wine at risk.

We received several nervous phone calls from wine makers warning us to serve their wine at the proper temperature. We assured them all of the wine is stored in a 12 degree Celsius wine cabinet.

The heat wave caught me off guard as well. I spent my day working around the city in a wool sweater with a long sleeved undershirt.. My wooly inferno reminded me of the Argentine summer and the sensation of being slowly cooked alive.

I passed several supermarkets. Eyeing their wine aisles stocked with out a temperature control system and chock full of Alamos, Santa Julia and Vasco Viejo, I thought that like me these wines knew how a roasted goose might feel.

Some of the best restaurants in town are guilty of cooked wine as well, storing their wine on shelves in the back, or worse yet above the grill.

On a hot night last February I learned the importance of proper wine storage. I buy wine from every price range and try to keep an open mind. I found a blend for 8 pesos and proceeded to the check out. To my surprise the wine had been discounted to 6 pesos.

Suspicious to say the least. If you wonder what cooked wines tastes like imagine the fruit knocked off the pallet and a dull syrupy sensation lingering in the mouth. Cooked wine also tends to make me feel ill. After a few sips I sent half the bottle down the drain and half into the oven over a roasted prime rib.

Proper wine storage requires a cool dark space. For more tips on how to keep your wine check out http://www.basic-wine-knowledge.com/proper-wine-storage.html

When shopping for wine be sure to note conditions. Is the space climate controlled? Most local supermarkets are not and it is well worth the extra stop to a wine shop.

As for me, after a long day of suffocating in my own clothes I looked forward glass of nice crisp white wine.

Consumer Reports Agrees: Argentine Malbec Is The Future

God has spoken. Consumer Reports finally got around to confirming the undeniable high quality and value of Argentina’s flagship grape, Malbec. http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/food/beverages/wine/malbec-the-new-merlot-2-08/overview/malbec-the-new-merlot-ov.htm

I’ll admit I was slight confused by the reports title “Is Malbec the New Merlot?” No- Malbec will never be Merlot. What does that mean anyway?

Sure both varietals have the ability to be elegant and complex or casual and everyday. But Malbec is Argentina’s claim to fame with a charm all its own. Grapes grow well consistently here and make unqiue exciting wines. And it shows most wines sampled received high ratings.

But, with over a thousand wineries in Argentina someone is bound to cut corners and laugh all the way to the bank. For example a 2005 Cantena Zapata was rated “far from the top”. This big name winery dominates the wine scene and uses this leverage to mark high prices. Is there wine good? Most of the time. Is it priced fairly? No. So how can you be sure to get the best of the best bargain in town? Argentine wines are a great value, especially when it comes to boutique wineries. Carefully crafted limited production wines made with integrity can be excellent with surprisingly low prices.

“Chang! Party of Four for Wine Tasting!”

This week we had the distinct pleasure of hosting 4 Changs for a wine tastings of Argentina’s best. It turns out, though, that they were two separate groups of two who happened to find us on the same day. How ironic.

Naturally all of our wines were Chang approved, especially the Don Juan Reserva by Perdices. We poured classic favorites from our collection and allowed our guests to choose from the selection opened earlier for an in-company tasting. A very expressive Sauvignon Blanc from Las Perdices could not have been more appropriate as Peter and his wife are building home in New Zealand. We were excited to show how well Argentina does New Zealands most popular variety.

The groups hit it off. Turns out all the Changs have a real flare for gourmet food. Conversation about the West Coast dining scene ate up most of the conversation as the groups shared stories about their time in Oregon and Washington. We ended the tasting with the Changs exchanging contact information and writing down Anuva’s own recommendations for several nearby restaurants.

Wine Should Not Go Down the Drain

It seems that the phenomenon of the shotgun approach to winemaking is not limited to California producers. Here in Argentina, we also find tremendous numbers of wineries dropping of or shipping Anuva samples of the 12 different varietals, 6 bi-varietals, and 6 blend 1st or 2nd vintage.

The suprising thing to me is how similar all the wines turn out to be. Medicinal Malbec, cough syrup Syrah and Cabernet, overly oaked Chardonnays, and none in the bunch actually speak to me.

It kills me to pour so much wine down the drain. Especially knowing how much effort and money goes into making each bottle, designing each label, selecting corks, driving the logistics process, etc.  But the reality is that I don’t even want to cook with these.

Several examples of new wineries, however, do exist that have a distinct focus. Naiara, Las Perdices, Cavagnaro, Vinos de los Andes all make either exclusively one varietal or only 3-5 different wines in total.

Las Perdices is actually an example of a winery that could do 18-30 different wines. Carlos Muñóz, the owner and winemaker there, has tanks of Tannat, Bonarda, Cab-Franc and other varietals just sitting there to play with in his blends. That to me says careful winemaking and well thought out products and thus it is rare that any of his samples ever get tossed down the drain.

Yerba Mate Tasting in Buenos Aires–Rules Apply

Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Brazil and especially Uruguay partake in the tradition of Yerba Mate. Just to be clear, there is no accent on the “e” of mate. It’s pronounced “MAH-tay” with the accent on the first syllable. Self-righteous marketers in the U.S. have begun putting an accent on the e of mate in order to differentiate it from the English word of the same spelling. A better solution would be to change the spelling altogether.

More to the point, sipping the herbal infusion tea mate is a very cultural, communal event. “Hacemos un mate”, is a catch phrase between friends that means much more than just getting together and having tea. Especially because of how this particular tea is consumed. The dry leaves (the yerba (herb) or hierba) are put into the mate (the thing you drink out of) and the “bombilla” (metal straw with built in filter) is inserted. Then the mate is filled repeatedly with hot (usually scalding in my opinion) water.

The Rules:

1. Everyone drinks out of the same mate. This for Americans espcially can be disconcerting at first since we have a very “this is my space, this is my property” attitude. I was this way as well: “Haven’t they ever thought about sharing germs!!” This is not the point. The process is:

• The “cebador” (feeder) pours the first mate and drinks it or spits it out as it’s pretty strong. (This I also find hilarious as you will see that the rules below contradict the spitting of the first mate)
• Then the cebador pours a mate for the first person in the group and they drink it, completely. That person then passes the mate back to the cebador.
• The cebador then fills the mate again and passes it to the second person. They drink and pass back.
• Saying “gracias” means that you are done drinking and do not want anymore and you will be skipped in the next rotation.

2. DO NOT, under any circumstances, move the bombilla. This is forbidden and will “wash” or spoil or spend the yerba. I have developed a theory around this called “The Conservation of Yerba” which is loosely based on physics principles like the Conservation of Mass and the Conservation of Energy.

3. DO NOT, under any circumstances, boil the water before “cebando” mate (cebar loosely means “to feed” but is only used when referring to mate) as this will also “wash” the yerba.

4. DO NOT, under any circumstances, add cold water to the mate itself. Even if it’s scalding hot (which it usually is) you just have to wait.

The flavor profile of yerba mate can best be described as bitter, strong, herbal and green. After all, it is an herb and it is, in fact, green. But once the taste is acquired, it can become quite a habit. In Uruguay especially, people have huge mates and walk down the street carrying them with their 1 Liter thermoses under their arms on the way to work.