Malbec mania: A once-humble red wine is now a hit

Published 8:09 pm Monday, March 16, 2009

Move over, merlot. So long, sauvignon.

Hello, malbec.

Malbec is today’s “it” wine, the new darling at the dining table. This once working-class grape used for blending in French bordeaux has risen in status to the gentry of grapes people want gracing their meals.

Malbec was recently featured on the “Today” show. There are malbec blogs such as the www.malbecmadness.blogspot.com. At the Malbec Maniac site, www.malbecmaniac.com, you can click on a video and listen to two Wall Street Journal wine writers talk about how malbec is “taking the country by storm.”

Locally, malbec is also much in demand.

“It has become a bit of a cult wine,” said Helmut Stieglitz of Wicked Cellars wine shop in Everett.

This malbec mania inspired Stieglitz to start a campaign he’s calling the Triple-M, which stands for March Malbec Madness.

During March, Wicked Cellars, 2616 Colby Ave., will open a bottle of malbec from Mondays through Thursdays and offer tastes to their customers.

Part of the reason to choose March to celebrate malbecs — besides the alliteration — is that March is also Washington wine appreciation month. And Washington happens to be one of the few states in the United States that produces a decent amount of malbecs that are decent to drink.

So with the buy local movement, March Malbec Madness made sense, Stieglitz said.

“The malbec grape is a thin-skinned grape that when given lots of heat and sun produces a wine that is fruit forward, with a more rounded off flavor and a little softer on the palate,” said Stieglitz, who is also on the board of directors for the Seattle Wine Society.

Dewey McCandlis, owner of Pacific Wine and Kitchen, 6915 Evergreen Way, in Everett, said there are always trend wines and malbecs happen to be really strong right now.

He recalled one Argentine malbec he discovered back in 2004: He sold more bottles of that wine than any other.

“It had the three things that make a great wine: a good nose, a beautiful lush mint palate and a long finish that was just spectacular,” McCandlis said. “When they are made well, they are really nice wines.”

And the Argentine malbecs happen to be excellent wines for the price, a good bottle selling for about $10.

Malbec can give you buzz on a budget — the wines are generally high in alcohol content. All this could be part of what is fueling the craze: People are looking for that exquisite malbec at an inexpensive price.

It doesn’t hurt that malbec might be good for you as well. Research has shown that the health benefits of red wine depend on the presence of certain polyphenols called oligomeric procyandins. Malbec happens to be one of the varieties with the most oligomeric procyandins.

It’s a good thing then that Washington “just figured out how to grow it,” Stieglitz said.

“Some people say I only drink a cab or I only drink a merlot,” Stieglitz said, “and some people have fallen onto the malbec and now that’s all they want to drink.”

Theresa Goffredo: 425-339-3424, goffredo@heraldnet.com.

The details

Malbec: A plummy wine with subtle, earthy tones and authentic fruit flavors that taste large and lush. Sometimes called merlot’s softer brother.

Price: Ranges from about $10 a bottle for Argentine varieties and from $15 to $55 for Washington brands.

It’s a worthy food wine that is best with beef but versatile enough for Mexican, Cajun, Indian or Italian fare, especially red-sauce dishes.