Spring has already made its presence known in Southern California. Really, it seems at times that summer is trying to crash the party. There's no need to rush things along. At my place, we have already begun the spring planting routine. I use the word "we" loosely. Denise has actually been doing most of the heavy lifting in that area while I take care of other springtime activities. Taking a nap on the couch, for instance. Taking a nap in the lawn chair on the deck. There are lots of places that need to get napped in before spring gets away from us, and I'm working diligently to cover those places while Mrs. Green Jeans sees to it that we can get yellow corn this summer. It sure is hard to find it anywhere else.
I expect my work load to get a little heavier after she reads this, so let's quickly find a nice white wine to refresh us after toting a hundred pounds of mulch up the hill.
Crios de Susana Balbo Torrontes will do nicely. Balbo makes wine in the Mendoza region of Argentina. I'm told the word "crios" means "offspring," so she's letting us know right up front that she considers her wine to be more than a product. But, just between you and me, it's a really good product. And Torrontes is a favorite grape for me in the warmer months.
The wine is a pale golden color in the glass, with a nose of ripe apricots, peaches and pears bathed in honey. There is a sort of oleander aroma, too. It's such a lovely smell, it almost made me think I had opened a late harvest wine by mistake.
Sipping it at room temperature, a lively acidity is the first thing I notice. Bracing and fresh, the flavor of peaches with orange peel takes over. There is no oak in this wine, so the fruit is there in all its glory. It fills the mouth well and has a rather creamy texture, especially when chilled. That's how I'm going to have it - after I tote that mulch up the hill.
It was raining in Los Angeles, which is never good news for the drive home from work. Added to that problem was word of a power outage in Laurel Canyon. Turning west on Hollywood Boulevard from Fairfax confirmed our worst fears. Slow moving traffic up the hill. We quickly decided to jog over to Greenblatt's. That quickly began to look like a bad idea, as the parking lot was jammed and service is never that good when we're the only people in the place. A five minute wait with no attention from the servers had us up and out the door. Let's try South Point, right across the street. The crowd was much more manageable at South Point and we sat near the window with plenty of elbow room. After quite a spell without wine, South Point Argentine Grill - formerly Gaucho Grill - has finally gotten the legalities squared away. It's a nice wine list, with a good variety of Argentine wines to go along with the meaty Argentine menu items. I had the Trapiche Malbec, from Mendoza. Trapiche is widely known as a good producer, growing grapes in the foothills of the Andes Mountains. I liked the look of it, deep purple as it was. The nose brought blueberries and cherries, with a little smack of vanilla as a result of the oak. The mouthfeel was quite full and complete. Black cherry and some spiciness were the stars of the show. I had it with the chorizo appetizer - which is enough for a meal, if you ask me - and the match was quite nice. The drive home was just fine after our little stopover, by the way.
