2000 Argyle Brut - Ringin' in the new year

The busy holiday season has made it kind of tough to keep up a regular 'blog routine. Which is a shame, of course, because this blog is about wines I try and here we've been in one of the busiest times of the year when it comes to imbibing. No doubt there have been a few interesting wines along the way and in between during the past couple weeks, so I thought I would start the new year off with a reasonably appropriate (timely) wine.

I personally chose the 2000 Argyle Brut sparkling wine to ring in the new year. I don't generally go out of my way for sparkling wines - or for that matter, New Years Eve parties. But the Christmas & New Years holiday time is one of the few occasions when I make a point to look for something sparkling. This time, I wanted to find something from Oregon, and this one didn't disappoint. Why Oregon? Hmm, good question. I can't really lay a finger on it, but on top of just having a soft spot for Oregon, I thought maybe I could find an interesting sparkling wine from the US at this time of year.

As it turned out, among the many sparkling wines at the Austin Wine Merchant late last week, this was the only Oregon sparkling wine they had. (Apparently they had one other, but they were out of it at the point I got there.) At $17.50, there wasn't a whole lot of downside to giving it a try.

This wine is 55% Chardonnay and 45% Pinot Noir. I found a very pleasant taste of apple tartness along with the bubbly and a hint of yeasty bread dough. Much fuller body and longer finish than the 'party champagne' I'd had earlier in the evening. It got thumbs up from the 3 others that tried it as well.

Price

About $17, Austin Wine Merchant, Austin ($20 at the Whole Foods up the street)

Overall

some excellent bubbly. Would definitely get it again.

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