So many new bottles clambering for attention, all shiny in the cellar rack compared to the dusty veterans on either side, which to choose? Tonight, WE try the lamb-beef burgers on English muffins with cheddar and caper remoulade, now and forever christened at our home as “Patrickburgers”. By the way, mah boys are oh-for-two with shopping for cornichons. No matter how many ways one explains “just get sweet gherkins” you’re not going to get what you need. Next time, I get the tiny pickles.
Rather than try these with Food & Wine’s suggested Brooklyn Brewery Brown Ale pairing I went with the familiar, this time the Malbec I snagged this weekend, a 2005 Don Nicanor Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina. This is a fine example of how dark, deep and earthy this varietal can get . . . like getting a shovel and tromping into a dark, rich, moist forest, digging about 6 feet down and breathing in your surroundings (or drinking it). It’s almost vampiric. Or like what the Headless Horseman might have with a book by the fire under his big gnarly black tree on a Friday evening. If he had a head of course. Or a comfy study with a fireplace.
So Don Nicanor gives us a dark ruby, almost violet, velvety, opaque red wine with a ruby rim that stains the glass. The nose consists of earthy notes of dirt, leather, wood and bark, combined with dark berries (blackberry) in the back. When we take a sip of this deep pit we find tar, smoke, burned blackberries, French Roast coffee grounds, and gamey meat. Alcohol was the biggest impression here (missed the %, sorry), acidity was high, the wine was full-bodied, moderately intense on the nose and a little more on the palate, with well-integrated but firm tannins, medium oak and a long finish. Probably would have been outstanding in a few years, for now it was harsh but flavorful.
Went great with the burgers!
