Wine Roulette: Who wants to play?

rotuts · May 20, 2014

"" the leftover wine """

never heard of this.

Kerry Beal · May 20, 2014

I know what you mean about magic happening with some wine pairings. I've never been a fan of most chardonnays but I purchased a bottle years ago at one of the local wineries and served it with a roasted chicken. The magic happened! Never to be repeated sadly.

**Smithy** · May 21, 2014

"" the leftover wine """

never heard of this.

It's rare in our household as well! Nonetheless, it happened..two bottles in a row, and I have another report: tonight's leftover Malbec wasn't half-bad with smoked salmon. I'd do that combination again.

**Smithy** · May 23, 2014

So:
Who else wants to play with the Malbec?
and
Who wants to start the next round? :smile:

rotuts · May 23, 2014

further Notes on the Malbec :

( this probably only matters to me :raz: )

at Tj's Boston area: $ 7.99 Ive always been under the assumption that Wine in MA has a graft tax: 2 buck chuck is

3 bucks, and the third nephew of the Speaker of the HOuse gets the buck as a no-show job .....

a new wine store opened near me, and as i was in the area ....

CloverLeaf Discount Wine and Spirits I thought Id take a look ...

nice store lots of stuff ...

Malbec there $ 11.99

Tj's is always worth a glance.

Rebel Rose · May 24, 2014

I definitely want to play, can't do it this coming week, but maybe next? I might be able to get a friend to go along and film the silliness as well. So who's next?

**Smithy** · May 27, 2014

We were out and about today, and decided to go into the local largest wine (and beer and spirits) store: Cash Wise Liquor in Duluth, MN*. We accosted a nice young saleswoman who thought the whole wine roulette idea sounded like a lot of fun. "What kind of wine are you after?" she asked. I explained that it was supposed to be a surprise, but that for price purposes I should probably pick something from, say, the second shelf from the floor. (Are all wine stores arranged this way, where the price gets higher with altitude? Or is that a Minnesota thing?) I warned her to hang on to me, lest I inadvertently purchase many broken bottles. She really got into it.

The selection:

Another Malbec! I'm sorry now that I didn't keep a bottle of Alamos Malbec, our last wine, for the sake of comparison. I confess I was hoping she'd steer me into, say, some Italian or Spanish blend. Nonetheless, this is wine roulette: totally random. I hope this is a wine readily available elsewhere among the participants!

Barefoot Malbec, no vintage year visible, $5.97/bottle, on sale (about $1 off normal price).

¹. Disclaimer: we're steady customers of this store, but have no business connection with them.

². Apologies for the quality of some of the photos. We did this on the spur of the moment, and my cell phone was the only available camera.

rotuts · May 27, 2014

Ill loo0k for it.

" lower shelf " is everywhere i think.

Kerry Beal · May 27, 2014

Darn - not available here in Ontario.

Edited May 27, 2014 by Kerry Beal (log)

rotuts · May 27, 2014

rats. not at TJ's

interested in how this compares to Malbec # 1

cyalexa · May 29, 2014

I frequently use Barefoot wines for cooking and have been known to happily drink any remaining in the bottle!

JoNorvelleWalker · May 29, 2014

We were out and about today, and decided to go into the local largest wine (and beer and spirits) store: Cash Wise Liquor in Duluth, MN*. We accosted a nice young saleswoman who thought the whole wine roulette idea sounded like a lot of fun. "What kind of wine are you after?" she asked. I explained that it was supposed to be a surprise, but that for price purposes I should probably pick something from, say, the second shelf from the floor. (Are all wine stores arranged this way, where the price gets higher with altitude? Or is that a Minnesota thing?) I warned her to hang on to me, lest I inadvertently purchase many broken bottles. She really got into it.

Almost losing balance.jpg Blind guidance.jpg
Ready to spin and point.jpg Blind selection second shelf.jpg

The selection:
Barefoot Malbec.jpg

Another Malbec! I'm sorry now that I didn't keep a bottle of Alamos Malbec, our last wine, for the sake of comparison. I confess I was hoping she'd steer me into, say, some Italian or Spanish blend. Nonetheless, this is wine roulette: totally random. I hope this is a wine readily available elsewhere among the participants!

Barefoot Malbec, no vintage year visible, $5.97/bottle, on sale (about $1 off normal price).

¹. Disclaimer: we're steady customers of this store, but have no business connection with them.
². Apologies for the quality of some of the photos. We did this on the spur of the moment, and my cell phone was the only available camera.

Barefoot wines have been OK for me but I have never seen their Malbec. The Malbec I drink is Fleur Des Templiers: cheap but good.

Smithy, that store is huge. I have seen nothing like that here.

**Smithy** · May 29, 2014

I'd never seen a Barefoot malbec either, until I opened my eyes to see what I had grasped. I was surprised. I do hope some other people can find it, so we can compare notes.

The store started out big but then made a major expansion a couple of years ago, when they added a Beer Cave (all the rage here, as though we don't have obliging snowbanks much of the year) and wine tastings, and widened the aisles but made them longer. It's the largest, though not the only, liquor store in town. That's pretty good for a city just shy of 90,000 people. It helps to be a regional commercial hub.

**Smithy** · June 1, 2014

rats. not at TJ's

interested in how this compares to Malbec # 1

I couldn't do a side-by-side comparison, but I think the Barefoot malbec was more well-rounded and softer, both in nose and taste. There was none of that strong note that you and I both noticed, like an alcohol burn, with the Alamos. I'd take the Barefoot over the Alamos in the future, even at the same price. I'll plan on getting more of this in the future.

This wine seemed to be a 'bust' as far as Wine Roulette goes, and I'll have to step away from the game for the next couple of weeks. If someone else wants to pick a wine and get the conversation going again, don't be shy... :-)

rotuts · June 1, 2014

not a bust. not at all. I just could not find it.

for me, i only go to Tj's

but .....

do you think your barefoot was more well rounded as it might have had 1 % < alcohol ?

should you go to that Wine emporium again, please consider checking that label vs

malbec # 1 just re etoh

thanks

blue_dolphin · June 2, 2014

I'm still looking for the Barefoot Malbec. My usual wine stops are TJ's and Total Wine and neither had it. I also checked BevMo and no luck there either. I go down to the Wine House in West LA to look for more unusual/interesting bottles but I don't think Barefoot is their thing.

However, I'm continuing my Mabec exploration, prompted by the first round here.

I didn't care for the Alamos. To my taste, it didn't have enough body to balance the astringency of the tannins. Obviously this is a young wine but it doesn't encourage me to set aside a few bottles to see how it would age.

On the other hand, I thoroughly enjoyed the 2010 Cruz Alta Grand Reserve Malbec. I served it with pasta with cranberry beans and greens from Deborah Madison's Savory Way cookbook. It's an earthy dish and the wine had enough body to stand up to the tannins and complement the flavors of the earthy beans, slightly bitter greens and tangy romano cheese.

I also tried a Maipe Malbec Rose and enjoyed it with crostini, tapenade and the Spanish Cinco Lanzas "cheese with rosemary" from TJ's (mentioned over here). Lots of fruit but crisp and dry. Very refreshing for a summer afternoon. Obviously not in the same category as a red wine, but hey, I'm exploring the grape :biggrin: !

I've still got two more Argentine Malbecs to try and I want to pick up a French Malbec to compare. I'd like to try one or more of them with the lamb meatballs with spiced tomato sauce from Suzanne Goin's A.O.C Cookbook. I haven't tried that dish before so I'm not sure if it will be a good match or not, but I'll give it a go. Maybe I'll have found a bottle of the Barefoot Malbec by then.

JoNorvelleWalker · June 3, 2014

I went looking for Barefoot Malbec today. No success unfortunately. Plus I got caught in a thunderstorm walking home.

**Smithy** · June 4, 2014

That's a shame about the Barefoot Malbec; you'll all have to take my word for it that it's a good value, I suppose. :biggrin: Jo, I hope you had a good drink to warm you up when I got home!

rotuts, the alcohol content of the Barefoot Malbec is 13% ABV. I didn't write down the information from the Alamos. As I recall it was slightly higher, but under 14%. (I'll post back again with the number, next time I see a bottle.) The alcohol content might be a factor, but I think blue_dolphin is right that the tannins were too strong and astringent in the Alamos to allow a good balance. Now that I've tried the Barefoot I won't bother with the Alamos again.

blue_dolphin, thanks for those notes and suggested pairings. I'll be on the lookout for some other malbecs also, based on your comments.

I won't be able to play for the next couple of weeks, but I'd love to check back in and see that someone else has kicked off a new wine.

JoNorvelleWalker · June 4, 2014

There were about a dozen varieties of Barefoot on the shelf, just no Malbec. I've enjoyed the Barefoot I have tried. I didn't really need something to warm me up, as even soaking wet it was 90 some degrees (32 some degrees C) and humid, though the temperature dropped twenty degrees after the storm went by. I would have enjoyed a drink but I had urgent business in the pastry forum.

Eventually I made a Cana Brava daiquiri (if I may speak about that here) followed by an Autumn in Jersey. For dinner I had a bottle of French Malbec in solidarity.

Paul Bacino · June 13, 2014

Well finally getting around..to this wine

Notice..it maybe a bit skewed...tasting out of my reidel Welch's glass

Paul Bacino · June 15, 2014

This combo..really didn't work!!! The chipotle..was way to smoky..with the tannins in this wine...I corked the wine..which was way better..the second day.

**Smithy** · June 15, 2014

Interesting that you thought the wine improved with a day's breathing, Paul. I didn't get that impression, but I *was* pleasantly surprised that it was at least as good the next day.

I just got back from a trip in which we brought a bottle of the Barefoot Malbec to the hosts. I've forgotten now which meal it accompanied - probably the grilled beef - but it was well-received by everyone.

Does some brave soul want to start a new spin of the wheel^W bottle?

Paul Bacino · June 16, 2014

Interesting that you thought the wine improved with a day's breathing, Paul. I didn't get that impression, but I *was* pleasantly surprised that it was at least as good the next day.

This Malbec has some tar toasty notes, that dissipated.

It is a quality.. I'm not real fond of.

Cheers

suzilightning · June 24, 2014

I found the Alamos in our local Bottle King for about 11.00 USD. Looked there, Wine King and A & P for the Barefoot ... found plenty of Barefoot but no malbec.

Served the Alamos to John with a meatloaf, mashed sweet potatoes and sautéed zucchini. He usually drinks tap beer or white wine but said that this red went really well with the meat and veg. He felt it wasn't as astringent as most of the reds he has had but was a bit rounder (his words).

Kerry Beal · September 6, 2014

Slight variation on the roulette theme - a neighbour gave this to me as a thank you.

I think it just might be a perfect bottle to play wine roulette with. Have no idea of the cost or availability but I assume it was bought in Canada. Since it's a Aussie wine I suspect it should be available all over the place.

Here we go. The LCBO's notes on the wine and costs.

Edited September 6, 2014 by Kerry Beal (log)

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