I have not had good luck with Argentina cabs, but I am always looking for the next one that is going to shatter my preconceptions. On the heels of the last Merlot that was very alcoholic I noticed this one has 14.8% alcohol … o-o. The wine is quite dark in color. On the nose are some lovely deep cab cherry smells. Most prominent when first opened. The bouquet fades as it has been open even a short period. Right out of bottle this wine is dominated by alcoholic flavors. Underneath you can taste some lovely deep and complex cab flavors. I decanted it 1 hour and it helped a lot allowing the fruit to come out and play on your pallet, all the while, specifically on the finish, the alcoholic tones are still there. The finish is slightly dry with some tannins. After two hours it was continuing to improve but even then the alcohol on the finish was noticeable. 2-3 years worth of bottle aging might let this shine and come out as the incredible wine I think it could be, but for now I HIGHLY recommend at least 2 hours decanting time. I would give this an 88 right now. It could reach 90-91 if 2-3 years. For the money I think there are better cabs out there. This is just below that magic $20 mark and they know it.
From the LCBO web site:
VINA COBOS FELINO CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2007 Mendoza Vina Cobos is the Argentine winery of acclaimed Napa Valley winemaker Paul Hobbs. TASTING NOTE: The purple-colored 2007 Felino Cabernet Sauvignon offers up spicy black currants and blackberry. Smooth-textured and layered it has excellent balance and a lengthy pure finish. It’s hard to think of a better value in Cabernet Sauvignon. Score – 91. (Jay Miller www.erobertparker.com Dec. 2008) 132365 $19.95 Featured 11/7/2009
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