Perennial QPR Super Stars- Part I

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Every year there are a number of wines that are produced for the kosher market that retail below the $30 price point which are just amazing and consistent wines, that simply do not get enough recognition. These wines are what I like to call perennial QPR super stars, mainstays of my drinking repertoire that I load up on every time they come out. These wines provide such deep value that they can easily be mistaken for wines at double or triple their price point.

While they don’t get the fanfare that comes along with an eye-popping sticker price, they still provide an extremely satisfying drinking experience. Often times these wines may be worthy of cellaring (or aging) to observe their development and evolution over the course of years.

In order to give these selections the care and treatment that they deserve, and to hopefully increase the purchase and production of such wines in the future, I am going to be doing a multi-part series where I feature these type of wines each week for the next month. The first two wines are personal favorites that I have tasted and re-tasted over the last few weeks.

 

Chateau Fourcas Dupre Listrac-Medoc 2012 – $25

This wine has recently been released in its new 2015 iteration, but I decided that I would check in on its older brother first. This is a chateaux located on the left bank of the Gironde river estuary in the Medoc region of Bordeaux, south and west of the famous wine growing regions of Paulliac and Margaux.

Listrac is an unloved cousin of the other left bank regions as it features more clay and limestone soils than the more well known regions. Unlike the clay soil of Listrac, the gravel soil that predominates other left bank regions allows for superior drainage and subsequently greater depth for the vine root. In gravel, the vine struggles to pick up water and nutrients from the soil below, thus causing the vines to burrow deeper underground. With deeper roots the vines tend to produce grapes with greater concentration and depth of flavor, which in turn results in some of the best wines in the world.

However, this is not to say that all the wines in the Listrac region are subpar. In fact, this kosher example is a superb Bordeaux wine, which is generally age worthy and extremely complex. However, given that it does not carry the brand-name appellation on its label, it does not carry a brand-name price.

The wine itself is extremely slow to open with at least two to three hours of decanting still needed at this stage in its development. The nose is extremely rustic yet elegant, with notes of wet foliage, pipe tobacco, moss and tree bark predominating. The mouth is bursting with juicy red fruit including raspberries and cranberries. As the wine opens, layers of secondary and tertiary flavors come shining through as well including baker’s chocolate, mushroom, and saddle leather. The wine still needs time to develop, as the structure is still really stiff, with ripping tannins that are slowly integrating.

This wine is still available in many retail locations and should be bought up along with the 2015 vintage, which is even more promising. The value of this wine, when you take into account their aging ability and their overall complexity, is off the charts.

Score: A-

Value: A/A+

 

Flechas de Los Andes Gran Malbec 2015- $25

This is one of the few kosher Malbec’s from the world famous Mendoza Valley in Argentina. This wine is absolutely fantastic, opening with a nose of ripe black and blue fruit, cinnamon, mineral, and green bell pepper. The mouth of the wine is well developed with round tannins, nice ripe black fruit, wild blueberries, cinnamon, nutmeg, and a hint of pencil led in the background. This wine would be extremely pleasing to anyone who is southern hemisphere wine lover, as it exhibits juicy fruit with a nice and well-rounded mouth-feel.

Again, this is a reliable wine that is good vintage in and vintage out. I highly recommend this wine as a wine to use to branch out from new world cabernet. This has sweetness of fruit coupled with a layered complexity that can be an excellent gateway into broadening horizons.

Score: A-

Value: A-

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