Drinks of the Month

Wine of the week: Colomé Torrontes 2015

Wine of the week: Colomé Torrontes 2015

The last couple of weeks have passed in a flurry of tastings marked by a number of standout (and some depressingly bad) wines.

This is emphatically one of the former from an impressive tasting from the northern supermarket Booths whose buyer Victoria di Muccio manages to offer a good deal of really attractive everyday drinking with some really interesting bottles for wine enthusiasts.

I’ve always been a bit lukewarm about Argentina's signature white Torrontes but the Salta region is the place to go for it and this bottle from Colomé is an absolute cracker. Not as full-on as a gewürztraminer but weightier than a riesling, it would make a delicious aperitif and a great pairing for south-east Asian food and tricky-to-match ceviche.

The winery, which was founded in 1831, is the oldest working winery in Argentina but was bought by Donald Hess in 2001. The vineyards are exceptionally high at between 5,600 and 10,200 feet above sea level which gives the wine its fresh acidity

Booths normal price for the wine is £12 - a price I’d actually be happy to pay for a bottle of this quality* - but they’re offering a 3 bottles for the price of 2 deal until Tuesday October 4th on all wines over £10 (except champagne) which brings it down to a bargainous £8.

If you’re unlucky enough not to live in the north-west of England where Booths has most of its branches, Brook & Vine is selling it at the moment for a very reasonable £9.99 and Eclectic Tastes for £9.75.

*although it does prove, what I've said before, that supermarkets are not necessarily cheaper than the indies unless they've got a promotion on. Always worth checking!

Santa Julia Innovacion Malbec/Touriga Nacional 2013

Santa Julia Innovacion Malbec/Touriga Nacional 2013

So here’s a special for Malbec World Day - maybe a bit of a cheat as it also includes some Touriga Nacional but I quite like Malbec in a blend.

In this case the Touriga Nacional, which Santa Julia was the first to plant in Argentina apparently, provides a dark, exotic element which takes what can be a jammy edge off Malbec at this price while the Malbec gives the Touriga a fragrant lift.

It’s part of a special parcel of wines that is available at Waitrose until May 3rd with an additional 20% discount for myWaitrose cardholders, presumably as an incentive to get us all to sign up. I wouldn’t be rushing to snap up the other wines though. The whites aren’t nearly as interesting or as well-priced.

The discount makes it a great deal at £6.39 but even at £7.99 it’s a good buy* And if you buy six bottles in total you get a further 5% off

Drink with steak (obviously) or lamb. It would also make a good barbecue wine.

For other malbec pairings see What food to match with Malbec.

*though only available in store and apparently through waitrose.com though I can't find it on the website.

I was sent this wine by Waitrose as part of a selection of samples.

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