The Most Popular Grape

Cabernet Sauvignon is arguably the most popular, and most widely-planted, varietal. For all of the places where it's planted, however, a top terroir clearly is Argentina, especially the high altitude Mendoza region. Today's featured wine, the Antis Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva, is a classic example of Argentine winemaking.

Antis Wines is dedicated to producing premium and reserve wines in Mendoza. Argentina. They are located in Maipu, on the foothills of the Andes Mountains. Their philosophy is centered on achieving wines that speak of the land where they are born and crafted. They believe that their task is to recreate and enhance the potential contained in the grapes, using state of the art knowledge, the best materials and latest technology.

In 2002, Antis built a new wine making facility, with a capacity of 300,000 liters in refrigerated stainless steel fermentation tanks, a cave for barrel aging in Bordeaux-style oak barrels and a temperature controlled wine maturation and bottle storage area.

Once grapes have achieved optimum ripeness, they are harvested by hand, and Antis uses only those grapes that are intact. They sort and discard those that are unsuitable for their winemaking standards.

Grapes are de-stemmed and transferred, nearly intact, into stainless steel vats, where they undergo maceration from 21 to 28 days, to extract color and flavor. Alcoholic fermentation is carried out using native yeasts. Throughout these steps, Antis performs four cycles of remontage on every tank each day.

The white wines follow a different vinification path. Malolactic fermentation of the premium wines is carried out in stainless steel tanks and in oak barrels, in the case of the reserve wine. Oak maturation takes place in small French oak barrels from central France; for  12 to 14 months, in the case of the reserve wines, and for six months, in the case of premium red varietals.

Antis Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva is produced from a selected parcel in the Alcuchu vineyard, planted with 15 year old vines. The wine is matured in 50% new small French oak barrels. It has an intense ruby color and and a very aromatic nose full of ripe plum and berries. In the mouth, it shows plenty of fruit flavor, with ripe plum and berries, with hints of cocoa and spice. This reserve wine carries a Bottle Club® price of only $12.96, making it a perfect choice for any day of the week.

In addition to the Cabernet, look for the Antis Reserva Malbec, the Classic Red Blend and the Torrontes.

Our Value Proposition

We're pleased to introduce La Celia Heritage Malbec, a Wine Advocate 93-point Argentinian wine that's simply a great hidden gem.

The winery, which began operations in 1882, is located in the Uco Valley, in the district of Eugenio Bustos, around 100 km (63 miles) south of the provincial capital Mendoza, Argentina. The stunning valley situated at the foot of the Andes is renowned for its distinctive terroir of outstanding vineyards. La Celia also adheres to the 360° Sustainability program developed by the VSPT Wine Group.

A wide range of microclimates, the magnitude of thermal fluctuations, soil and elevation diversity contribute to a unique ecosystem suitable for the growth of high quality Malbec grapes.

La Celia Heritage Malbec is made ​​from grapes of high aromatic expression from the parcels 47 and 49 of their lands. The wine ages in French oak barrels for 12 months, followed by 8 months in bottle, and is 100% Malbec.

The grapes are hand-picked in boxes, at the peak of maturity, with cluster selection in vineyard and cellar.

On the nose, this wine is the maximum expression of elegance: ripe fruit jam, balsamic notes, subtle floral contributions, typical Malbec of their vineyard. The oak aging appears in a classic way, with prominent toasted notes. On the palate, the wine has sweet attack, firm structure, balanced tannins, alcohol and acidity. It has a persistent finish. The winery recommends decanting 40 minutes before serving. Ideal with beef ribs, flame grilled vegetables and orange and chocolate marquise.

With a Bottle Club® price of only $19.98, this will be a great weekend wine, but you should also cellar one or two or three. 

Glass with Class

It is a fact that the proper glass enhances the sensory experience of wine, beer and spirits. Wine aficionados know that there are different glasses for reds and whites, as well as for various dessert wines. And if you're really into the experience, you know that there are glasses for many different varietals. Each varietal-specific glass is tuned to the characteristics of that grape, revealing nuances that would likely be lost in the wrong glass.

Up until about five minutes ago, there had not been a glass specific to Malbec. Argentina's signature red, the Malbec category has been growing steadily over the last few years. Bodegas Graffigna is the oldest winery in the San Juan province of Argentina. Graffigna worked with renowned glass-maker Riedel, and a slew of industry experts, to create an all-new Malbec glass.

The Graffigna Malbec is available at Joe Canal's in Lawrenceville and Woodbridge. Last week, staff members from both stores attended an industry event in Atlantic City, and had the opportunity to be among the first to enjoy Graffigna Malbec in the Riedel Malbec glass.

All of the rich berry notes fairly jumped out of the glass, with subtle black pepper and toasty highlights coming along for the ride. And that's from a wine that really over-delivers at a BottleClub price of under $11.

Serious wine enthusiasts should look for the Riedel Malbec glassware where they shop for their wine accessories. And everyone looking for a great value in a Malbec should seek out the Graffigna Malbec.

Rick's Excellent Adventures in Argentina - Part 4

We started the day packing and getting ready to spend the night in Mendoza. There, we would take our test and have our last meal with the fantastic folks from the Catena Winery and Vineyards. We also had to say goodbye to the wonderful staff at the family home that took such great care of us over the past three and a half days. They cooked all of our meals kept the house clean and were always there if we needed something.

We loaded into the van and were off to the Tupungato valley and the high altitude vineyards. The trip was about 2 and half hours long but the sights were unreal as you see from the pictures.


Once we arrived at the vineyard we were met by Belen Iacono, the Vineyard Manager. She explained the history of the High Altitude vineyards that were developed by Nicolas in the 1980s. The first planting was in 1989 and the first Malbec from this vineyard was in 1994, a five year period before Nicolas was satisfied with the quality.


Our first lesson was on pruning the vines and staking them out for the next year’s growth. Our task was to select a cane to act as the Loader Cane for next year. The diameter should not exceed that of a pencil. It should also have good spacing between the buds to avoid congestion. The vineyard manager will determine how many buds will be left on the cane based on the previous year’s yield. The selected cane should be as close to the trunk as possible to avoid interfering with the growth of the other vines. Once this selection process is done all of the unwanted canes are pruned away and the selected cane is laid flat against the first wire and tied down. We each did about 4 vines, and in the same amount of time it took us to do these four vines, a worker about twenty feet from us did and entire row. His job was very secure.




Soil composition is one of the most important elements of a successful vineyard. The structure of the soil must stress the vine. The staff dug a large hole in one of the rows in the vineyard to show us the soil. As you can see from the picture, it starts with rather soft sandy soil and then turns to clay and then very rocky soil. This makes the vine really fight for every drop of moisture and causes the fruit to become very hearty. This along with proper trimming makes for a yield of very healthy and juicy fruit.


We went over to another section of the Vineyard and there was a pavillion there with the two flagship single vineyard Catena Zapata wines, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. We tasted the wines and they were fantastic, rich dark fruits with well structured tannins with a finish that went on for minutes.

Of course next was lunch and boy what a lunch. We had about 9 different appetizers and then the main course. Along with the meal there were several different wines from the Catena Winery. I learned how to use a knife (didn’t have a saber around) to stroke the neck of the champagne bottle and slice the neck open.

We arrived at the hotel with enough time to shower and change then off to Francis Mallmann 1884 Restaurant in Mendoza for testing, graduation and of course dinner. The test was about 50 challenging questions ranging from dates to names to terms, but if you read the study guide and listened you would be able to pass. We all did and we received our Certificate of High Altitude Malbec Ambassadors. We then had dinner with a couple of folks from the vineyard and then back to the hotel to get ready for our flight to Buenos Aires.

Rick's Excellent Adventure in Argentina - Part 3

We are off and headed to the Catena Zapata Winery. Once we get there, Pablo Sanchez explains the root stock. He talks about the 145 different clones of Malbec that were planted, and the selection process they went through to narrow down the clones that they wanted to use. After much time, discussions and of course tastings they narrowed it down to 5 different clones.

We had a nice tour of the winery and tasted several different wines from the tanks. The taste difference between the wines at this stage and the finished product is amazing. We then went to several barrels of Chardonnay. We tasted the wine, it was very clear. We then learned how to stir or "rack" the wine with a paddle.


Once this was done, the wine became very cloudy and tasted very different. This process brings the sediment from the bottom and blends it back through the juice. Our next task was to fill barrels from the large tanks. We each had to fill a barrel and the trick is to fill it and not spill it. Well, I failed, but not too badly, only one of our team, Michelle, did not spill a drop.


Next we went into the tasting room and learned the history of how and why Malbec exploded in Mendoza, about the different vineyards and growing areas, and learned how and why Laura’s father decided to head for the foothills of the Andes Mountains. Laura talked to us about her efforts working with the government, trying to develop a map showing different appellations.

Next we learned how to blend a Malbec. At each seat was 6 glasses of wine. One of them was the final blend of the Catena Zapata Malbec, and the other five glasses contained wines from different Catena vineyards. Our job was to taste each of the five and determine the flavors in each. We then tasted the Malbec and had to determine what percentage of each was used to produce the final blend. Once completed, Laura would come over and taste your blend. Not to brag but when Laura tasted mine she said that it was delicious. She looked at my blend sheet and said that it was very close to the actual blend. They collected our blend sheet and we were off to lunch.

Another fantastic meal made ever better with Laura, Alejandro Vigil Head Winemaker for Catena and Pablo joining us. We talked and then Laura had to leave for a flight to Buenos Aires. When we went downstairs to the Hospitality Center and there on the table was 11 bottles of wine, and each had personalized label and mine said “Richard’s Blend”. While we were at lunch the winery staff took our blend sheets and produced a bottle of wine for each of us to match our sheet. Wow, I made a bottle of wine! I have yet to open it and taste but Labor Day is coming up so I may open and taste with the family and then take the rest to work to share with my co-workers.


We made it back the house. There was this wonderful little lady that was there to show us how to make Empanadas. God bless her, she was not a day under 90. We each made three and they were taken away to be cooked as part of the dinner. We all went out back to pavilion and had the chance to watch the making of our dinner of Rabbit Stew simmered in Chardonnay. Okay, here I go again, another food that I have never tried. The group would laugh at me at each meal. They called me the "Coors Light and Cheeseburger" guy. But in the end, with the help of my new friends, I did try about 95% of the food and to tell you the truth I liked just about every item I tried.

Rick's Excellent Adventure in Argentina - Part 2

We are up had a fantastic breakfast at the house and are now in the van heading for the Alma Negra Vineyards in Visit Flores. Alma Negra literally means “Dark Soul” and represents the depths of beauty in the shadows of our souls. Ernesto Catena, Laura’s brother, operates this winery. He was not able to be with us but Matias Fraga, his Export Manager and his brand new winemaker was there also. We walked the vineyard and learned about Ernesto’s passion for Biodynamic wine production.


We were told that last harvest he had llamas with baskets on their backs carrying grapes to the winery. They had a slight problem with the llamas eating half of the grapes, but that was something they would work on.


We saw a new winery on the property that is in the construction phase. We learned that there were no plans for the structure. Ernesto would come out and say we should have a door about here and we want the grapes to flow in this direction. There are only 3 guys working on the construction, no rush it will be finished sometime.


After our walk around the vineyard we came back to the reservoir and had pizza baked over open flame fire pit right next to the beef that was cooking for our lunch. Of course we had the Sparkling Shiraz to wash it down.


I did learn about the water issues here in Argentina, as you drive around the area you see troughs everywhere. These troughs carry the water that is used for the irrigation of the crops. When it is your turn a person from the water commission will come out and watch as you close the dam to this property and open it to yours. If you don’t need the water at that point you channel it to your reservoir for later use. So if you plan to move to Argentina and purchase a vineyard make sure you purchase water rights.


We then went into the winery and learned that they only did the sparkling at this facility. The still wines were across the street at the Alamos facility, owned by the Catena Family. We then tasted the Mystery M Blend, the Mystery and the Alma Negra. Wow, what fantastic wines! Of course we had the Sparkling Malbec with our lunch and snack.


We got back to the property and had a nice evening to relax and did a tasting of some wines that were not exported. They were under the El Enemico label. We had a Chardonnay, Malbec and a Cabernet, there were all excellent. The reds were big and in your face with a finish that just lingered on forever. The Chardonnay was creamy and very nice.


We finished the day with another fantastic dinner with a sneak peek of the family private wine cellar under the house. Boy, would I like to spend some time down there with a cork screw.


After that it was dessert, relaxation and some study time in the Family Room for our upcoming test.

(There really was a test that we all took on Day 4! Everyone that passed was awarded with a certificate as a Master in High Altitude Malbec Ambassador.)

Rick's Excellent Adventure in Argentina - Part 1

Day #1

I'm sitting at Philadelphia International Airport waiting for the first leg of my trip to Catena Winery in Mendoza, Argentina to start. The travel will be a little long but I am sure that the end result will be well worth it. I fly from here to Dallas, TX then to Santiago, Chile and then into Mendoza Argentina. From start to finish about 22 hours, but before I know it, I will be tasting Tilia Wines at the orientation on Sunday.

After a long, hard, boring flight I made it through my first leg of the trip. We all meet up in the airport in Santiago, Chille. We started the day with I was told is a Malbec Camp tradition, introductions at the Pesoc Sour Bar and a toast to the week ahead.

We boarded our plan for a quick flight over the Andes Mountains, it was straight up and straight down with a lot of up and down, and right and left. I now know what a ping pong ball feels like. I later learned was a form the Dunder Winds from Chile to Argentina.

We arrive at the family estate La Vendimia “Catena Zapata Family Estancia” compound & Vineyard located in the Rivadavia District of Mendoza. Laura Catena was waiting on the front porch for us. After the introductions we started the afternoon with some relaxation, I went horseback riding. My horse was very high strung so I was led around by the nose with a Gaucho holding the rains. It was still very nice because we rode around the vineyard and got the chance to see a lot of the property. After that, we had a lunch of beef and cheese. We also had a 2002 Vintage Catena Zapata Chardonnay. Wow, it was fantastic, golden in color with the flavors of the best Chablis I had even tasted.

Right after lunch a band came out and played Argentine folk music, two young couples demonstrated the traditional folk dances. Laura got out there with one of our team and then they played a song that Laura said we must all get up and dance to, well one of the very pretty young ladies came to me and I am very proud to say I didn’t step on her feet once.




Later we went out in the back yard to a pavilion and tasted the Tilia wines. We had Chardonnay, Malbec, Torrentoes, Bonarda and Malbec/Syrah. Very nice wines, easy drinking and nice to the pocket, my favorite was the Malbec/Syrah and the Torrentoes. Don’t get me wrong, all of the wines were very good and a great value.


Next,a butcher showed up with a side of beef that he hung in the pavilion and proceeded to cut. There was another guy that took the meat and covered with salt and then cooked the meat on an open fire grill. Laura and Pablo Piccolo who is in charge of exports for Catena Wines, joined us for dinner. I have to tell you, the meat was fantastic, as was the entire meal. We then shifted into the Sitting Room for dessert and espresso and talked well into the night.

That ends day one of Malbec Camp. My understanding is that in the morning we will head up to Ernesto’s Catena’s vineyard Alma Negra, where we will learn about organic an biodynamic vineyard concepts. So for now, good night and I will be back soon with my next installment!

Argentine Wine Explosion

We've got a nice selection of Argentinean wines in our stores, but did you know that just a decade ago, Argentina was virtually unknown as a wine making country?

From 2007 to 2010 alone, sales of Argentinean wine increased about 88%! Among countries exporting wine to the United States, Argentina ranks fifth. And it's not just the amount of juice that's rising, according to Nielsen scan data reported by Wine Business Monthly in the fall of 2010, Argentinean wine saw a 38% dollar rise in sales for the year ending April 2010.

Most of the Argentinean wine coming into the United States is malbec, known for its dark berry fruit, great structure, and soft texture. Malbec, a grape that originated in France, started becoming well-known in the mid-to-late 2000s. By 2009 it achieved a growth rate in sales of 50% in one year.

While wine is also grown in the provinces of, San Juan, La Rioja, Salta, Catamarca, Río Negro and Southern Buenos Aires, the Mendoza province is the most lucrative, producing more than 60% of the Argentine wine. Due to the high altitude and low humidity of the main wine producing regions, Argentine vineyards rarely face the problems of insects, fungi, molds and other grape diseases that affect vineyards in other countries. This allows cultivating with little or no pesticides, enabling even organic wines to be easily produced.

If you want to try a great Argentinean wine at a reasonable price, pick up a bottle of Achaval Ferrer Malbec, rated 91 points by Jay Miller of Wine Advocate.

"This prestige Argentine producer puts their best foot forward with this classic Malbec. It has a punchy nose with mushroom, blueberry, mint, blackberry and leather. It is full-bodied and juicy with plenty of black and blue fruits, vanilla, anise and mocha. Let this guy shine on its own after dinner." Debbie Miller Nelson - Wine Manager, Woodbridge

Try it for only $16.99 in our BottleClub!

Fork and Gobble It: Warm Reflections for a Cold Weekend

Fridays on the BottleBlog will feature a food-related article, wine pairing, or travelogue. Today, Wine Manager Mark Ricca shares some of his travel stories.

It will be very cold in the Northeast this weekend. I am preparing myself by flipping through photos of wine trips I have taken over the past three years and the food, wine, and experiences that they gave me. After ten years of being a wine professional, I can say that this is a great business to work in. I like to tell people, "You'll never be rich, but the perks are sooooo nice." Meeting people, traveling, trade tastings, you get to do some pretty interesting stuff and a lot of it is just part of the job. I have always traveled to visit different wine producing regions as part of my work since I have been doing this, but over the last three years I was lucky enough to visit three countries that I had always wanted to see, Chile and Argentina in South America and Spain.

In April of 2009 I traveled to Buenos Aires to begin a seven day tour of the wine producing regions around Mendoza, Argentina and Santiago, Chile. Argentina is a meat lover's paradise. Beef, goat and lamb are on proud display roasting on open fires in the windows of restaurants throughout the city. My tour group's first day in B.A. was designated a "relax" day, and I loved the lunch a renegade band of us took in one of the parillas, or grill restaurants, that dot the city blocks. Window shopping for grilled meat was more like it. Picture windows showing fire pits with goat carasses splayed on long skewers roasting slowly to perfection made for carnivore paradise.

We started lunch with one of the native sparkling wines which Mendoza is quite adept at producing these days. For my meal I opted for a grilled skirt steak garnished with chimichurri the local garlic/herb and chili condiment and a nice Malbec to wash it all down. Not a bad way to start a business trip.

That whole trip was as much about food as it was about wine. Lunch at Pascual Toso one afternoon was more like a bacchanal than just a business luncheon. Like so many of the estates we visited they had an outdoor kitchen complete with a wood fired oven for empanadas. Empanadas are very serious business in Argentina. Some of the examples I had in Mendoza were ethereal. Light pastry filled with beef and onion or shrimp and vegetables, were ridiculously easy to eat. I have yet to find a restaurant here in the tri-state area that comes close.

An open pit with a goat over it smoldered filling the air with a sensuous aroma while a grill a few feet away was busy cooking a variety of cuts of meat and blood sausages.


I fortunately am not shy about any of these foodstuffs and I dug right in.

Again, Malbec was the order of the day for wine, although each of the estates that we visited did their own sparkling wine served to us during the "cocktail hour." All of those proved delicious and I'm grateful we carry at least a couple in the store at any given time. The estate wines from Toso are excellent, as were the reservas. Once again the old adage proved true that when you eat locally you should drink locally as well for the very best pairing.

Where a landlocked and primarily agricultural country such as Argentina was all about meat, when we crossed the Andes into that thin strip of coastal country that is Chile, seafood stepped into prominence on the menus. I recall a ride up to a vista to overlook some of the vineyards that are part of the Vina Montes empire with the man himself, Aurelio Montes. At the top the breathtaking view was enhanced even further by ceviche and a Montes rose. A very gleeful group posed for a Kodak moment with their host.


I'm sure anyone who reads thinks "Wow, I'd really love to be able to do that." Don't be so quick. There was considerable work to be done on this trip also. When we got back down from that hilltop, we had to taste through a flight composed of all the current releases in the Montes portfolio. Man, that was ugly.

On a more recent trip to Spain, food and regionality were again juxtaposed as we traveled the entire country end to end in seven days. Silly as it may sound, this was actually hard work. It was all done in a van. One of my favorite meals on that trip was a seaside luncheon in Malaga. Family style platters of pristine seafood of every imaginable type were trotted out before us. We washed it back with a dry Moscatel from Jorge Ordonez. A gorgeous wine made with the regions prominent white grape but in this case fermented dry, it was fantastic with all that fish and shellfish. The real eye opener was the Langostines.

Even when the food was simple, it was exotic. More complicated and layered preparations such as Valencia's renowned Paella still retained a comfort food, unpretentious feel that belied the labor intensive technique they required. Snails never tasted so good.

Being composed of snails, which are abundant as is the rabbit that goes into that dish, a wine with a certain gamey quality to it was required. We drank Garnacha from El Nido which paired well with the meal and brought an exotic element all its own.

Now as I write this, I have just finished shoveling another six inches of snow off my driveway and sidewalks and I look forward to another wine and food laden jaunt as I head off to Tuscany in May for my honeymoon. I can already feel the warmth despite this winter cold and anticipate the the excitement in even the simple offerings of the locals.

Eat, drink, learn

Every Tuesday on the BottleBlog, we'll focus on interesting or exciting industry news from here in New Jersey, to the valleys of California, to the vineyards of New Zealand. Today we're staying close to home as our very own Deborah Miller Nelson was recently featured in the Courier News and Home News Tribune.

Editor's note: Debbie Miller Nelson, certified specialist of wine and wine manager at Joe Canal's Discount Liquor Outlet in the Iselin section of Woodbridge, recently traveled to Argentina to immerse herself in the country's culture, food and, most importantly, wine. This is a first-person account of her experience.

At Joe Canal's, all managers and wine staff travel at least once a year to a wine-growing region somewhere in the world. By meeting the actual winemakers, walking the vineyards and tasting new wine from the barrel, we can see firsthand the passion that goes into each bottle.

In April, I was fortunate enough to be selected to travel to Argentina. My weeklong adventure took me first to Buenos Aires, then to the Michel Torino winery in Salta, and finally to the Trapiche winery in Mendoza.

While April is our spring, Argentina is in the Southern Hemisphere and so has the opposite season of fall. Therefore, during the week of my visit, crushing was occurring. I was thrilled to be a part of it.

I had a short one-night stay in Buenos Aires, where I dined at the best steakhouse in town and sampled the wines of Michel Torino. I flew to the Torino winery in Salta the next day. I stayed at the winery itself, which has a wine spa as well. On my first evening in Salta, I went to the spa before dinner and bathed in Torrontes, an indigenous white grape, while sipping the matching wine. You wouldn't believe how soft Torrontes can make your skin!

The next morning we toured some of the vineyards, and Torino's vineyard manager showed us the irrigation process. At the time of my visit, Salta hadn't had rain in almost eight months, and water had to be brought in to help the vines thrive.

We also were able to see Torino's certified organic vineyard called Cuma, where employees' horses roam free, feed on the grasses and the vines are trellised in canopies to protect the vines from the extreme sun.

After our tour, we met the winemaker to taste the wines from start to finish. First, we tasted from the steel tanks, then the barrel and then from a formal tasting of the full lineup of 13 wines.

In addition to drinking wine, Argentines love to eat. I must admit that I gained 5 pounds on this trip, sampling specialties such as empanadas, sweetbreads, fresh vegetables, rabbit and short ribs.

Trapiche

Later in the week, I flew to Mendoza to spend time at Trapiche's wineries. This was where I was able to take part in the grape harvest. I clipped Cabernet Franc grapes from the vines and gave my bushels to the vineyard manager, collecting one coin per bushel. This is how Trapiche's field workers get paid. They collect their coins as they pick, and then cash out at the end of the day.

Back at the winery, I worked through the grapes on the sorting table. I hand-crushed the grapes one at a time, separating the skin from the pulp and putting them in separate buckets.

After sorting, I was given full access to the cellar where wines were quietly aging. I was able to make a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, a single vineyard Syrah and two different single-vineyard Malbecs. I called the wine Vina de Sol, and while I didn't win the competition to create the best blended wine, I was thrilled to take part in this process. I brought home a shirt that is still stained with grape juice.

The next day I went horseback riding in the country and enjoyed a gaucho-style lunch over an open fire, with plenty of Trapiche wines. (Gaucho, a term used to describe some local residents, is loosely equivalent to our "cowboy.")

In the evening, we toured Trapiche's oldest winery, which is newly biodynamic. On our tour, we saw how old and new practices had come together. The winery was quite rundown when it was purchased, but its new owners saved all the old machinery for historical purposes. On the modern side, the winery installed a state-of-the-art tasting room with glass ceiling and a cellar.

After the tour, we enjoyed some of Trapiche's sparkling wines on the balcony before a formal wine tasting with the head winemaker, Daniel Pi. We tasted through eight wines, from which I selected some of my favorites, including the Trapiche Oak Cask Syrah, which is under $10 and Trapiche's two single-vineyard Malbecs, the Vina Francisco Olive and the Vina Frederico Villafane, which are about $45 each.

After sampling Torino's Cuma wines on my trip, I urged my wine buyers to bring in both the Malbec and the Torrontes. I have since introduced many of our customers to these inexpensive, delicious wines.

In addition to the food and wine on my trip, I was exposed to Argentine tango dancing and gaucho-style dancing, with traditional costumes resembling old-world cowboys. We also enjoyed some late-night dancing at discotheques. My dancing earned me a nomination from the Trapiche staff of "party person."

Back home in Woodbridge, my customers enjoy hearing about my travels and, of course, experiencing the wines I found along the way. By bringing my trip to my customers, they are able to appreciate the wines on a more personal level.

My colleagues this year have been to Spain, Chile and Portugal. Next year's trip is still a mystery, but wherever it does bring me, I'm ready.

**Originally printed in the September 15, 2010 editions of the Courier News and Home News Tribune