By the time Friday of my staycation arrived, I’d spent a little too much time in the sun.  As the pool area has no umbrellas and no shade, I was forced to spend the day inside.  Thankfully, the weather had cooled off a little, so Hubby and I opened the windows of our condo, and I made myself comfortable in the sunroom, where I enjoyed a nice breeze, while keeping myself out of the sun.  After a tough day of reading my book, Hubby made dinner and I opened a bottle of red wine, before we settled into a Friday night movie.

2007 Kaiken Reserve Malbec

The 2007 Kaiken Reserve Malbec (winery) was 90% Malbec and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and had a dark, vibrant purple color.  On the nose, there were red fruits, followed by dust, nutmeg, smoke, and cedar.  In the mouth, there were some sour cherries mixed with nutmeg and cedar.  The wine had a medium body, medium acidity, and high alcohol.

Is this worth a glass after work? Eh…if you have a bottle on hand, drink it, but I wouldn’t go searching it out either. At a suggested retail price of $14, this wine just didn’t excite me.  It was overpoweringly “hot,” so the alcohol dominated the wine’s flavors.  Letting the wine breathe and pairing it with the steaks that Hubby made for dinner helped give the wine better balance, but still didn’t give me what I was looking for.  There are just better Malbecs for under $20, and there are other wines by Viña Montes that I would buy before this one.