When most people think of Sparkling wine, Champagne comes to mind. In truth Champagne represents a small percentage of the sparkling wines out there. As time goes on there are more and more options as additional wineries and regions start experimenting with different styles of Sparkling wines. And of course many counties have long had their own traditions when it comes to them. Today I’ll look at an Argentine example from Trapiche.
The Trapiche Sparkling wine is a non-vintage selection. This offering is a blend of Chardonnay (70%), Semillon (20%), and Malbec (10%). The “Charmat Lungo” method, widely employed for producing sparkling wine in Italy was used. This wine most often sells for just under $15.
Sparkling wine is a little like Petite Sirah for me. No they don’t have a thing in common. What I mean is that whenever I have an enjoyable example of either it occurs to me that I don’t drink enough of either Petite Sirah or Sparkling Wine. The Non-vintage Extra Brut from Trapiche has lovely pure yellow hue. Hints of mango emerge in the nose and also continue through the palate which features a serious wallop of pineapple. An edge of creaminess emerges mid-palate and continues forth joined by copious golden delicious apple notes. Towards the back of the palate ginger comes out in force and carries through the finish which has lots of flaky biscuit and yeast elements.
I was impressed with the quality of this wine for the money. Most impressive was the nice finish which lingered. There are hints of sweetness here and there but this is a dry wine. A lot of folks save Sparkling Wine for special occasions. And that’s fine in some ways. But when you can get a tasty and well made sparkler from Argentina for such a reasonable price why wait for a special occasion? Check this wine out and tell me if you agree. As with the Torrontes, if you like this wine you may want to hit up the folks at Trapiche on their Facebook page.