The 2022 Pampa Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina came dressed to impress with a back label that read like a romance novel. “Fresh strawberry, plum, and toast.” Toast? Really? I’ve had toast. I’ve even burnt toast. Never once have I thought, “You know, this tastes like a Malbec.” Then it drops “meaty and succulent,” and suddenly I’m wondering if we’re still talking about wine or if I hadn’t just opened a can of Spam by mistake.
But then came the first sip. And I’ll be honest: I LIKED IT. The fruit was fresh and solid — not overly sweet, not too dry, just hanging out in that Goldilocks zone of red wine happiness. It had a nice medium puckeryishness™ (for those who prefer fancy talk: tannins), and a decent body that felt like it was giving my mouth a confident handshake.
By Day 2, the Pampa was still strutting its stuff — same tasty fruit, same steady body, no weird flavors showing up like unwanted guests. It even played nice with my leftover lasagne, which, let’s be honest, is a rare occurrence because leftover lasagne never happens. The wine and the lasagne got along just fine. Garfield would approve.
At $7.99, this is a win in every sense. It’s meaty (apparently), fruity, toasty (whatever that means), and overall just a solid Malbec that doesn’t pretend it’s more than it is. Would I buy it again? Oh, absolutely.
So yeah, “meaty and succulent” might’ve been overkill, but I’ll forgive them. This one’s a keeper. A round of applause for the Pampa—now please, someone explain the toast thing.
