"Trio" wine from Bodegas Ados, Spain

Some days are easier then others.

On some days, the biting rains come rushing down from the mountainside, and all I want to do is hide. I want to take my beautiful wife in my arms, hold her by the fireplace, and open a decent bottle of wine... we'll sit then, in the pale mid-afternoon light; when anxious clouds roll past our snug little home, and sip a little wine, and share a little conversation.

     

    

      That's the time when I most feel like a king - like a rich man.

     Some wines have that power. They can take an ordinary moment and metamorphose them into memories that will last for years, or decades... Some wines.

     So on the recommendation of a local wine store, I picked up a bottle of "Trio" from Bodegas Ados in Ciudad Real, Spain. The winery, it is worth noting, is organic. I am a firm believer that organic wines are better wines (for the money). One needs look no further then Jean Bousquet of Argentina and the incredible value-for-money that winery produces to understand that organic wines are better wines (or at least have the capacity to be). Please read my review of Jean Bousquet should you have time, as their Malbec and their Reserva are both some of my most highly rated wines for 2010.

2004 "Trio"

Syrah / Temperanillo / Cabernet Sauvignon

bottled for Bodegas Ados, Ciudad Real, Spain by http://www.seacove.com/

13.5% ABV, $14.50 CAD (BC)

• Visual:    utterly dark garnet centre, bruised plums fully intense, with a barely perceptable cherry rim
• Nose:     moderate+ intense nose after decanting 40 minutes; dark exotic flowers (black lilies, irises), dark stone fruit & baie noirs (black cherries, black raspberries), some leather, oak & dark chocolate
• Palate:    moderate++ (fairly well balanced) acids, moderate tannins, moderately intense palate that fairly well mimics the nose, though with a much fainter level of intensity... decent body, average structure for the price, acidic finish
• PAIRS WITH:    Burgers. Buy good beef (add some lamb - trust me) and make a good burger. Then open the wine. This wine needs some fat to balance those ugly acids. Certainly, I am a little spoiled, but I could drink only one glass of this without food before my stomach asked me why I hated it so much? Try it with pasta as well; a baked tomato pasta with cheese and once again, you have a counter-balance for those aggressive acids (even with the tomato sauce).

So it's not a bad wine, and I apologise if I made it seem like it was, but it's not a good wine. For $14.50 it's ok - it's average. I don't think I would ever buy it again, but I wouldn't spit it out at a party either (as long as there were burgers or pasta to balance it). It's a neat blend that you won't see very often, and has more depth on the nose then could ever be reasonably expected for $14... just don't drink it on it's own.

CIN CIN!!   SLAINTE!!