2006 Pouilly-Fume and 2006 Argentinian Cabarnet Sauvignon

A busy work week so a slow week here.  I'm combining mini-reviews of two wines I've drunk the last few days.

The first I grabbed out of desperation because I didn't have any beer or white wine in the fridge:  a 2006 Pascual Toso Cabarnet Sauvignon from Argentina.  This winery was established in 1890 and is located in Maipu, a few miles east of Mendoza in the well-known wine-making province of that name.  This wine is 100% Cab Sauv.

I accidentally bought this bottle when I was buying Sauvignon Blancs and just saw "Sauvignon" on the bottle, not the "Cabarnet" or the fact that the wine was red.  I was in a hurry.  This ran me about $15, and the alcohol content is 13.8%.

I have never been a big Cab Sauv fan, and after not having drunk any for probably several years, this bottle reconfirmed my feelings.  It's a very fruity wine: I got blackberries and vanilla.  This would go great with a roast or grilling if you're having steak.  It's just a little too 'red winey' for me, and it's getting pushed to the back of the counter to use for cooking.

The second bottle was my last bottle of Sauvignon Blanc for the season, although this is actually a Pouilly-Fume from the Loire Valley:  a 2006 Domaine Seguin, which is based in Pouilly-sur-Loire, so you can't ask for a more authentic P-F than that.  This bottle ran me $29 and it's 12.5% alcohol by volume.

I went to one of Indianapolis' biggest ethanol product emporiums looking for Pouilly-Fumes (Kahn's, which is one of my favorite places just to browse and read labels, though I do buy things there too to support my reading habit), and this was the only bottle I saw, down on a bottom shelf.  I was surprised they carried only one (or, if they have others, that they weren't in the Loire Wines section).

I liked this bottle much better than my first P-F a few weeks ago (at $29, I should).  If you hid the label, you probably wouldn't know this wasn't, say, a California SB.  It had the typical SB nose, though not as grassy/asparagussy as many of them.  The wine itself was just ok in my book, no great subtleties of flavor, just a pleasant white wine/SB.  I tend to drink these without food; maybe I'll start doing some of my tastings with a meal because it definitely makes a difference.  The SB from a few weeks ago that I was drinking while eating pretty potent blue cheese was a revelation paired with food.

If you want to impress the boss or the future in-laws, this wouldn't be a bad wine to serve them.  Practice pronouncing the name first.