Over the past few years the growth of Argentine Malbec and Torrontes has exploded making Argentina a real player in the US wine business. Gaston feels there are two key factors to this success. The first is the "quality to value" these wines represent. In the down economy that we have seen of late consumers are much more savvy about what they are spending their money on and the wines from Argentina are offering exactly what they are looking for; quality and consistency at a good price. Finca El Origen wines delivers both. 
Secondly, Gaston believes that these wines are successful because of the near perfect growing conditions in the vineyards of Mendoza, Argentina. High elevation, low rainfall, dramatic temperature differences from day to night and the overall poor soil conditions in the region combine for low yield high quality fruit which is of course key to making good wine.
The most widely known and consumed varietal from Argentina is by far the malbec. I think a lot of the appeal of malbec is its softness and ease of drinkability while generally it still provides enough structure that cabernet and merlot drinkers enjoy it as well. In tasting the malbec with Gaston I was amazed at the complexity, roundness and structure it provided while all of the flavors of blackberry, cherry and dark stone fruit flavors lead into a soft smooth slightly oaky finish reminiscent of a much more expensive wine. If I didn't know better I would have guessed that this wine sold for at least twice as much as the reasonable sub $11 price tag. Next time you have that BBQ or grill a nice steak try it with a Finca malbec, I promise you will not be disappointed. 
Another great wine from Argentina, that is starting to get some recognition in Texas, is the Torrontes. This is a very interesting wine reminding me in some ways of viognier. Living in Texas where it is 90 degrees for about 9 months of the year I am always looking for a new white wine to drink and this has become one of my favorites. With floral, peach and citrus notes on the nose you are expecting the wine to have a slightly sweet edge. This, however, is not the case. The floral and citrus notes are followed by a crisp, fresh and dry finish with just the perfect amount of acidity. Some experts feel that Torrontes could be on its way to competing with Pinot Grigio in popularity in the U.S. Finca Torrontes is the perfect sipping wine or pares well with chicken or fish.. This wine retails around $10.00
The Finca wines are among category leaders in sales in the great state of Texas thanks to not only the quality and price of the wine but the endorsement and recommendation of wine experts like Mary Busby. Gaston and I spoke with Mary, at the HEB store in Pearland, in early December. Mary, as with many of the HEB wine experts, is a veteran of the retail wine business. She realizes how important it is to her customers that she suggests new varietals and wines that she knows will provide the perfect accompaniment for that special dinner or occasion. She is confident in recommending Argentine wines, especially Finca.
The Finca El Origen wines are available at your neighborhood HEB stores. In addition to the Malbec and Torrontes, Finca El Origen also produces a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Gran Reserva Malbec which are exceptional as well.
Pick up some Finca and see why these wines are among the top selling wines from Argentina in Texas. After you try them drop me a line at 该E-mail地址已受到防止垃圾邮件机器人的保护，您必须启用浏览器的Java Script才能看到。 and let me know what your thoughts are on the wines.. Welcome to the new year, looking forward to discovering some new foods, spirits and wines.. I hope you will join me....

Rolfe Schaumburger