I really haven’t imagine that I will buy wine from Park’n Supermarket. I always have the impression that wines from Park’n are all mass-market wines lacking any character. However, when late at night when all the “normal” wine shops have been closed, I was forced to just pick a wine from Park’n.
Looking at the shelf, all the French and Italian wines are from producers that I have very little knowledge. In addition, most of them are just around HK$100 which I really quite worried about their quality. To play safe, I rather look for wines from the New World and especially from those reputable producers that I have good experience with. I have tried Montes Purple Angel before and was quite impressed with it. Maybe I will give Montes any try.
There are three Montes wines in Park’n shop: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec. Personally, I’m not a fan of 100% Merlot and sometimes find that they may lack structure. I rather prefer a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot. Among Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec, I finally decided to pick Malbec.
Although Malbec has been popular in Bordeaux before, almost no one in Bordeaux planted Malbec any more. Nowadays most people would probably associate Malbec with Argentina since it is Argentina that make Malbec famous. Its popularity in Argentina has prompted some producers in Chile to plant Malbec as well. Generally, Malbec from Chile is also quite fruit-forward as Argentina but may have more tannins and has stronger structure.
This bottle of 2010 Montes Classic Series Malbec doesn’t has particularly strong aroma. Yet it still has quite good aromas of black fruits, red fruits and vanilla. It is quite rich in palate, has good fruit and good intensity with a firm structure. For this price of HK$108 two bottles, this is really a wine with very good value for money. Really not a bad wine for everyday drinking.
Purchased from Park’n Supermarket (HK$108 for two)