Couch cushion change wine

What the last set of wines wasn't value oriented enough for you?!? The next two may do it. They aren't trully spare change cheap but they are very afforadble and both are interesting additions.

If you are looking for good less expensive wine (as most are) look south. No not to Australia but South America! There are some very tasty wines at very reasonable costs. Here are two that caught my notice.

Norton 2006 Torrontes - I had never even heard of Torrontes when I tried this. The importer told me to think of white grapefruit. When I smelled the wine it definitely had that aroma plus other green or unripe citrus. It smelled like it might even be a sweet wine but really it was not. This is not an auspicous wine. Its a quaffer for sitting and drinking on a hot summers day. It probably wont make you think or take you some place sublime. Its simply a citrus noted, moderately dry, pale, easy drinking wine and had buzz going about it at the tasting. I think it would appeal to non wine drinkers as well. And at $8/bottle its no wonder that at the tasting one woman bought all the cases before I could even take a bottle or two home. :) $

Montes 2006 Malbec (Chile) - say it with me now mmmm - albec, mmmm;aalbec, mmmmMalbec. This was a dark deep plum colored wine with aromas of chocolate, smoke, and plums. It made me hungry smelling it! Like a few good Zinfandel I've had but done better, this is a plummy, jammy, fruity, warm bodied wine. It would pair well with similar food pairings too. Braised pork, BBQ ribs, Phily cheesteak are all foods I would think would go well. Even smoked tuna or salmon. This is a full bodied wine that I described as fun to drink at the tasting. It didnt have mouthfeel of racy burgundy or vevlet of deep Cab but kept me interested and enjoying so that I wanted more. Again a real value wine too. $ 13/bottle