Sip, sip hooray! April 17th is World Malbec Day  – a date when Malbec lovers around the world celebrate the must-have grape of the moment. Malbec wine is a real crowd-pleaser with rich, fruity flavours, spicy notes and a soft, velvety texture.

 

Malbec is a purple grape variety commonly used in making a full-bodied red wine. The grapes have an inky dark colour, robust tannins, and a smoky finish. Malbec is one of the varieties allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine.

 

We at Le Pommier are big lovers of Malbec, and our 100% Jonathan’s Malbec shows you just why! Jonathan was the resident bull at Le Pommier, who illustrated his excellent taste by breaking into the vineyards and consuming most of the Malbec harvest in 2012. Now Jonathan will always be fondly remembered for his playful antics, and everybody can enjoy his favourite cultivar, Malbec.

 

Jonathan’s Malbec has aromatic notes on the nose, giving way to rich mulberry and dark cherry tones on the palate. The wine shows full, but finely structured tannins, that will reward well with a couple of years of bottle maturation.

 

Here are a few food ideas that you can pair your perfect bottle of Malbec with on this perfect World Malbec day:

Meats and Proteins

 

Malbec is perfect with dark meat, poultry, roasted pork, and leaner cuts of red meat (such as sirloin, fillet, and steak). If you like more exciting meats, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how well the fruitiness in Malbec will complement more gamey and earthy meat cuts like smoked chicken,  ostrich burgers, or any venison.

Cheese

Malbec’s strong flavours can be almost overpowering to many foods and cheeses.

Therefore it is perfectly paired with strong tasting and rich cheeses like blue cheese, gorgonzola and a very matured cheddar. The perfect cheese platter would be to add fruits that you will find the notes of in a Malbec like black cherries, blackberries, blueberries and plums.

 

Herbs and Spices

Pairing dry desert herbs with a Malbec makes the wine tastes fruitier and richer. Therefore robust herbs like sage, rosemary make a striking complementary pairing when used subtly. Pairing mint for some reason with Malbec will give a more complex taste, making it an excellent option for traditional lamb chops and mint jelly!

 

Favourites

Malbec pairs well with barbecued foods, so a BIG YES for enjoying with your braai! Enjoy your favourite Malbec with spicy food & pizza, making Malbec pretty much a good all-rounder we think!

Because it’s a bold wine with intense aromas,  Malbec doesn’t need a large bowl glass. When you’re talking about temperature, it’s best to serve  Malbec just a bit lower than room temp: somewhere between 15 and 18 degrees Celsius.

 

Happy World Malbec day from all of us at Le Pommier!