Gato Negro Merlot

When friends deicide to catch up over a lazy evening, what is better than to have a bottle of nice wine to make the evening more appealing?

Couple of my friend decided to have a mid week break as the Wednesday was a holiday. Now, it have almost become norm among my friends to let me choose the wine and we paid a late visit to Madhuloka, our favorite liquor boutique on Tuesday evening.

After some hunting around, I decided to try 2006 vintage Gato Negro Merlot, a medium bodied wine from Chile.

Gato Negro is one of the oldest brands from Chili, produced at the San Pedro region. Chili does produce some exceptionally good wines, so I had no qualms picking it up from the aisle.

Shyam did the honors with the bottle (we did manage to misplace the wine opener this time, and luckily, I had my Swiss army knife and he used the cork screw of the knife to uncork the wine :P ) and I must tell you, the wine proved very good value for what we paid.

The wine is medium bodies, with a well rounded taste. The wine have a fruit forward taste, and is predominantly pleasant jammy in taste. I believe the grapes grown in Chili is less acidic, owing to the sunny days, and it sure helps the Merlot to retain a smooth, velvet like experience. The wine went well with thandoori chicken and cheese, but however, the channa masala spiced up with pepper was not exactly a good match. 

At 545 INR a bottle, the wine is not at all expensive, and I found it better than some pricier wines. The wine goes well with or without food, and is rich in flavor, but not overpowering. I won’t place it among the best out there, but it is one among the best entry level wine out there. If you fancy a easy on pocket, easy on palate merlot to make your evenings merry, this may be your ticket.

 Wine, friends, poetry and a cool night sky, what a combination.
(I miss you Reggy Mina, and you are remembered fondly)