Two weeks ago, a couple of old friends from our New York days, whom we met on vacation in Argentina but haven’t seen since we left NYC, dropped by our place in San Francisco to say hello.  It had been almost exactly three years since we had first met at our charming little bed and breakfast in Buenos Aires and, later that week, shared delicious, traditionally Argentine steak and wine dinners. 

While everyone seemed to enjoy catching up after being so long out of touch, I found it slightly ironic that we ended up with a wine like Boekenhoutskloof The Wolftrap 2006, which was so meaty that it almost tasted like having steak and wine all in one glass.  Ah, it was like reliving the good old days in B.A.!

The Wolftrap is made up of a mixture of 50% Syrah, 48% Mourvedre, and 2% Viognier (yes, white grapes!).  This is the first South African wine that we’ve reviewed, and it was quite unique.  We detected smoke and red bell pepper aromas on the nose, a blast of smoked meat on the palate, and then a finish that left our tongues tingly — in fact, the finish gave me the same sensation I get when I’m chewing cinnamon gum.  And finally, while I expected a full bodied wine given the varietals involved, the alcohol content of this one was only in the medium range, complimenting the acidity nicely.

For the money, this wine was yet another winner.  Vegetarians out there, here’s your chance to experience meat without all of the guilt!