Award-Winning Alamos Malbec Inspires "Daring Pairings"

MENDOZA, Argentina, Sept. 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Alamos® Malbec, America's most preferred Malbec¹, is grown at the foothills of the Andes using grapes that combine bold layers of flavor and excellent natural acidity for a wine that enhances any meal. In fact, in a recent survey of culinary professionals,  more than half surveyed agreed that Malbec pairs with many types of food².

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130919/CG82920)

"Our unique growing conditions produce Malbec grapes with incredible flavor making the wine highly versatile for pairing with food," said Alamos winemaker Felipe Stahlschmidt. "The higher elevation of our vineyards provides the ideal climate and sun exposure to yield grapes with rich, layered aromas and flavors."

Whether you are a culinary professional, a trained chef, a home cook, a foodie, or you simply like to experiment with food and wine pairings, Alamos invites you to  take the Daring Pairings Quiz to put your degree of daring to the test. Where do you fall on the Daring Pairings scale? Are you Mildly Daring, Wildly Daring or somewhere in between? Take the quiz below to find out.

Once you've determined your level of daring, match it to the perfect menu idea, such as Purple Potato Gnocchi with Pork Belly and Sage Butter or Manchego and Chorizo-Stuffed Piquillo Peppers. Or, if you find yourself on  the Wildly Daring end of the scale, try pairing Alamos Malbec with Five-Spice Crusted Short Ribs with Eggplant and Miso Black Garlic Jus, a dish that chef contestant Gregg Druskinsky created to pair with Alamos Malbec on the "Daring Pairings" themed episode of  ABC's hit cooking competition series "The Taste."  For these recipes and more Daring Pairings, visit www.tastingtable.com/alamos.

Regardless of your own Daring Pairings Quiz result, you can be certain that Alamos Malbec is versatile enough to complement just about any food.  In addition to the award-winning Malbec, the Alamos portfolio of high-quality Argentine wines also includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Red Blend, Malbec Seleccion, Chardonnay, and the bright, fruity white wine Torrontes.

Alamos Daring Pairings Quiz

1. You're at your favorite local foodie haunt, and the minute you open the menu you go:

a) Straight to the burger section, but you're not looking for a run-of-the-mill cheeseburger. You'd like something a little out of the ordinary, something that pushes the traditional burger envelope.

b) Straight to the daily specials to choose something unknown and unpronounceable. After all, what's life if not for food experimentation?

c) Straight to the menu's entree section. You're ready to try a new beef dish you've had your eye on – it looks like it could be really good.

2. You're at a regional food and wine festival, glass of wine in hand, and you're perusing the food offerings for the perfect pairing. You gravitate toward:

a) Something identifiable, fresh and just slightly avant-garde. You're pretty hungry and want to try something new, but you don't feel like getting too crazy.

b) Something you've never seen, tasted or even heard of before. It smells delicious but, hey, if it doesn't work out, you can always grab a brat and some 'kraut.

c) Something you've heard about and have wanted to try. It's a little outside of your comfort zone, but what's a food festival if not for trying new things?

3. You're camping with friends, and each of you has offered up something to grill over the campfire. You choose:

a) The freshly-caught trout, pan-seared in butter, with a little sea salt. Simple and fresh.

b) What looks like a filet but could also be some type of organ meat. It smells good, though, and everything tastes great when cooked over a campfire.

c) Some sort of sausages. They look a little…different, so you're not exactly sure what type of sausage they are, but they're frying up nicely and they smell phenomenal.

If your answers were mostly:

A…You are mildly daring. You're a foodie who craves a good pairing, and you like to try new foods, but you don't like to stray too far out of your comfort zone.

Menu Idea: Purple Potato Gnocchi with Pork Belly and Sage Butter Sauce

B…You are wildly daring. You love food, and believe the fun is in experimentation. No food is off-limits, and you're not afraid to try the unknown.

Menu Idea: Five Spice Crusted Short Rib with Eggplant and Miso Black Garlic Jus

C…You are daring. You're not afraid to go out on a limb with your food pairing choices. Sometimes you choose the familiar, but mostly you're up to the challenge of trying something new.

Menu Idea: Manchego and Chorizo Stuffed Piquillo Peppers

About Alamos Wines: Alamos crafts quality wines from Argentina, offering the best of Mendoza's high altitude vineyards at an incredible value ($13 SRP). Alamos grapes are grown at the foothills of the Andes Mountains at elevations of 3,000 to 5,000 feet, where intense sunlight, cool evening temperatures and mineral-rich irrigation from mountain snowmelt translate to rich wines with intense flavor characteristics. Winemaker Felipe Stahlschmidt combines modern methods with more than a century of historic winemaking techniques to craft flavorful Argentine wines of extraordinary quality and value. For more information, visit www.alamoswines.com.

¹ IRI, TTL US FD & DG, Argentine & Premium Import Brands, Volume Sales, Current 52 Wks Ending 5/13/2012.
² The online survey was conducted among 214 members of one of the most reputable culinary institutions in the United States during the period of May 9, 2013 – May 16, 2013.

Media contact:
Liz Conant/FleishmanHillard
916.492.5333/[email protected]

SOURCE Alamos Wines