Sacrebleu! Qu'est-ce que c'est? Marketing?!

"Ooh la la. The seductive aromas!"

Clearly, this woman is discovering Cahors: The French Malbec. Unfamilar? Scroll up. Look right. Visit all the sites on the blogroll. It's the ad campaign that's everywhere; a product of the Palate Press ad network.

Basically, "Cahors" is a region near Bordeaux, France. For hundreds of years, they have been making the "black wines of Cahors," made primarily with the Malbec grape. Malbec, one of the five allowable red grapes in Bordeaux, has enjoyed notoriety on the level of "the other guy in Wham!" or- perhaps more accurately- one of the people besides Waldo in the "Where's Waldo" books. In so many words, most normal folks probably didn't know what the hell Malbec was...

...that is, until the Argentine wine boom. During the 1990's, Argentina began to focus on the export markets of Great Britain and the United States. By the end of the 90's, they were exporting 3.3 million gallons of wine (source: wikipedia.org). By comparison, exports in 2010 are expected to be a whopping 4.3 million hectoliters!

...

...wait a second. Oh, here we go- conversion factor: 1 hectoliter = 26.4172052 gallons. So, with no due respect to the metric system, 2010 Argentine wine exports are expected to exceed 113 million gallons (source: http://www.calwinexport.com/node/1100)!! As Sgt. Arcot "Thorny" Ramathorn would say, "that's a lotta hooch!"

What's my point? Argentina is selling a boatload of wine, and since Malbec is the most widely planted red grape, one could further say that Argentina is selling a boatload of Malbec, and France wants a piece of the action. They've been vinifying the grape for hundreds of years. Why doesn't it sell like the South American stuff?

Ah, marketing. You sassy wench. Everyone knows what Malbec is now. Nobody knows what Cahors is. Traditionally, French wines don't show the varietal on the label. It has to do with the concept of terroir, where the "sense of place" has a much greater influence on the wine than the measly grape. To label a wine with the grape it's made out of is to spit in the face of the sacred land from whence it came.

Problem is, folks are buying wines with varietal labels. What grape constitutes the wine is perceived (often incorrectly, IMHO) as a reliable, consistent indicator of what the wine will taste like. And I suspect this is what's driving demand, because I've seen so many more stodgy French producers start to do it.

And so the case goes with Cahors. They're hoping to ride the popularity of Argentine Malbec, and I applaud the French for swallowing their pride and putting some marketing into effect. But, will it work? While I'm confident they're getting lots of exposure to a targeted demographic, a great point was brought up on Twitter by The Atlanta Wine Guy, whose wine opinions I hold in higher regard than my personal hygiene:

Argentine Malbec is big, fruit-forward, and lush. Cahors Malbec is good...but different (here are my thoughts on a bottle). Reminds me of a time I bought some Merlot-loving neighbors a nice bottle of St-Émilion. I thought I was getting them something really special, but when it didn't deliver the big, blueberry/blackberry fruit bomb, I think they were disappointed. Old World wines are another animal, for sure. They just take a little time to appreciate, especially for the novice wino.

At the very least, maybe the Cahors marketing effort will get some more people to try something new.


photo courtesy of The Broke Wino (http://thebrokewino.wordpress.com/)

May Malbec Tide You Over (Until the Exam is Done!)

I'm gonna level with you: I don't like to put up half-assed posts. I like to give them some thought and either:

1) Teach you something interesting

2) Make you laugh

Hopefully, both! After a day of analyzing market data reports, it's amazing how knowing you educated and/or entertained someone- even one person- can bring you back to levity. This is why I strive to bring good content to the table everytime I post, and why I cry myself to sleep in the fetal position every time I slap something on the page without effort (see my previous post, awesomeness of the picture notwithstanding).

However, after my review session for the imminent Certified Specialist of Wine Exam (culminating 18 classroom hours and 12 weeks of study), my confidence has been a little shaken. So, admittedly, I'll be focusing much more on studying this week, and need to take off the blogging cap, which I imagine- for no particular reason- looks like barbershop quartet hat.

Tonight, I was focusing on Argentina. As many of you know, one of the grapes that has really taken off in Argentina is Malbec. In fact, more Malbec is planted in Argentina than anywhere else in the world. If you looking for a good one, I'm partial to Catena (Catena Alta when the money tree is in bloom) and BenMarco; both of which can be found in many retailers. These wines are big and ripe, with great cocoa/coffee and dark fruit flavors, high acidity, and good tannic structure.

But, did you know that Malbec is originally from France (surprise, surprise)? It's been an integral, but not major part, to many Bordeaux blends, and has a home in the region of Cahors, where it's called "Côt" (pronounced like "cut"). And- what do you know?- I happened to be drinking a Cahors tonight, made from the Malbec grape, which has flourished in Argentina, also which I happen to be studying at this moment! Surely, I planned it that way.

Okay, I didn't. I'm not that organized or clever. But I do think I hear The Police playing "Synchronicity" somewhere in the background.

Now, remember how I hoped you would learn something. Let's assume you did, because the comedy-level of this post is about on par with a pre-vasectomy testicular shaving. Anyway, I suggest that the next time you want to drink a Malbec (and everyone seems to be these days), try one from Cahors. The label won't say "Malbec" on it- it'll just say "Cahors"- but you'll know it's Malbec, because you are now smarter. If you're looking for one to try, how 'bout this one:

Okay, sorry I couldn't get Ansel Adams to take the freakin' picture. I'm getting a new camera. Give me a break.

2006 Marquis Rocadour Cahors

Price: $12.99 at Total Wine & More

100% Malbec, 12.5% Alcohol by Volume

Nose: Blackberries, leather, mocha, and some strawberries. After it's sat out for a while, the initially tight nose has really opened, and I'm getting a lot more of the berries, plus some nice mint and a hint of blueberry

Taste: Good acidity (suggesting it'd be good with food), really tart; perhaps some not-quite-ripe plum, and definitely some tart raspberries. The finish shows a nice tannin structure that is balanced with the acid. I also get a little strawberry cream, then coffee on the finish.

Food Pairing: Okay, it's not profound, but I think this would kill with a nice aged N.Y. Strip. Probably even better with grilled lamb chops.

Music Pairing: Because it started off slow, but really hit its stride after some time, drink this while listening to "Green Grass and High Tides" by The Outlaws. If you disagree, I'm just starting out with this "wine/music" pairing thing, and welcome your suggestions.

So, I hope this post showed some effort, and either educated or entertained. Unfortunately, it will be the last until next week. In the meantime, I've got to go back to the wine-mines and keep chipping away. Hopefully, next time I talk to you, I will be a CSW!

Until then, Cheers, Sláinte, Salud, Prost, Skål, Konbe, and Kampai!