Cinco De Mayo! Casa Madero Cabernet Sauvignon

It wasn’t until I moved to Texas that I even became aware that Cinco De Mayo – the 5th of May – was any kind of festive occasion. In the US, of course, it’s not any kind of official holiday. But it’s an important historical event for Mexico (at least regionally), and with a significant Mexican heritage here in Texas there are indeed celebrations. Even here in Austin.

I didn’t know and I don’t think it’s common knowledge, so let me add that Cinco De Mayo commemorates the victory of the Mexicans over the French army at The Battle Of Puebla in 1862. Read all about it…

And so I thought, why not seek out a Mexican wine? I think I’d heard that there were wines from Mexico but it isn’t anything I’ve ever tried. Surely here in Austin I should be able to find one. Well, yes, but barely. Out of the thousands of wines available at Grapevine, they had two(!) Mexican wines.

Of those two, the Casa Madero was the one that was recommended. Bottom shelf. The bottle was dusty. Do I really wanna try this? Only $8.50(on sale)? Oh okay, why not.

This is some darn good wine though! 100% Cabernet Sauv, full bodied with good tongue-dragging tannins. Rich black currant aroma and flavor. I would honestly put this up against any of the $20–and–under Napa Cabernets in the Friday Night Fights that I’ve been posting about recently. I would bet it would compete pretty well. It surely beats the more expensive Castle Rock of that last Friday I went to.

I read a bit more about Casa Madero, and I found it has quite a history. It was established as far back as 1597, making it (they claim) the oldest winery in the Americas. It’s gotta be too hot to grow grapes down there, doesn’t it? Generally yes, but in the Parras Valley where this estate bottled wine comes from, the grapes are grown around 5000 feet altitude which makes things a bit more temperate.

Price

$8.50 (Austin)

Overall

Good luck finding it, but if you do, I found it very good. No vintage anywhere on the main label, but the neck of the bottle says 1999.

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