My bet is that many wine drinkers are frightened by grapes they rarely encounter. Always sticking to the same wines made with the same grapes dulls the mind. Sameness equals boredom but that’s me and may not be you. Could you imagine having pork chops, mashed potatoes and peas for dinner every night. What would you know about Chinese, Hungarian, Italian or Vietnamese food?
Do not quiver in terror then when I say we are trying a wine made from the Malagousia grape widely thought to be a Greek grape that of late has clawed its way back from near extinction. It has ripe peachy flavours and low acidity.
I picked up a Malagousia on a Liquor Control Board of Ontario’s store manager’s discount which each store manager has the authority to do when space is needed for incoming shipments of wine. Ordinarily this wine is $17.50 but at this particular store it was marked down to $12.10.
As for aromas a luminous combination of peach, apricot, mango, pineapple and a smidge of honey. On the palate the acidity is indeed gentle but it is there! The tropical nose is carried through on the palate with guava, pear, apple and Greaves peach jam. Short finish.
While the wine won’t cause you jump up and down it has some features in common with Viognier, Moschofilero and Gewurztraminer. We might call it reticent but that is simply a characteristic on the wine spectrum. The label says it would pair well with salads and light appetizers and I take no issue with that. I would say take a filet of perch, bass, pickerel or Northern Pike and place it in foil with garlic, onions and a splash of this wine and after adding salt and pepper wrap it up and put on a grill or under the broil. A light freshwater fish deserves a light and fresh wine like this.
You needn’t fear night sweats. This grape does not bite!
(Malagousia 2020, Mylonas Winery, PGI Attiki, $12.10, LCBO # 991850, 750 mL, 12.5%. A little Birdie Told Me So Rating 89/100).
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