Dinner with Sylvia Corti, Head Winemaker for Argento Wines, at One, Oct 16, 2012

The Date and Time: Tuesday, October 16, 2012  6PM to 10PM

The Event: Dinner with Silvia Corti, Argento Wines Head Winemaker.

The Venue: One restaurant, Hazelton Hotel

The Target Audience: wine writers

The Availability/Catalogue: all wines tasted are at the LCBO, the Bonarda arriving in November. The agent is Profile Wine Group

The Quote/Background: Silvia Corti has been at Argento for eight years but has been making wine for 17 vintages. There was a short ("Cerca del Cielo") documentary about a day in her life in the Mendoza. At the dinner, she spoke about the wines at the LCBO. The company, though, makes four tiers of wines, with AG47 as entry level, Argento, Argento Seleccion, and Argento Reserva.

The Dinner: A knockout --

 

We all tried the Argento Pinot Grigio 2012 (+620492, $9.95) with its peaches and minerals, and some apps: lamb and grilled vegetable empanadas, beets and squash, eggplant puree, parsley and pickled shallots, salmon ceviche, orange and lime consommé, apple and avocado chutney crisp fingerling. At a private room, we had the meal: seared scallop, sweet potato raviolini, cured cherry tomato, double smoked bacon foam (Argento Chardonnay 2012, +591701, $9.95) with its apple fruit and finishing acidity.  Next was locro stew (house made chorizo, corn, butternut squash, white beans, roasted peppers) with Argento Bonarda 2011 ($9.95, arriving in November to the LBO GL) and its Italianate black cherry palate and soft finish. Then came beef two ways: roasted strip loin with chimichurri and pico de gallo, and braised short rib with black pepper and thyme frites, pecorino desardo, with Argento Malbec 2012 (+591693, $9.95) and its black fruit component augmented by mocha tones. We were supposed to conclude with Argentine cheeses, but none are exported to Canada so we had a selection from the Cheese Boutique. The wine: Argento Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva 2010 (dense with vanillins and red fruit, some age showing, +164764, $12.95.

The Downside: I would have liked to have tried the Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 (+589523, $9.95) to see it matched against the Reserva and find differences.

The Upside: a chance to talk to the winemaker.

The Contact Person: trina@hendrypr.com

The Event's Marketing Effectiveness and Execution (numerical grade): 88.

Chimo!  www.deantudor.com