Many of my fellow wine-rating friends on Vivino refer to moments like this as “The Joy of Discovery”. In this case, the discovery was courtesy of our dear friend Erin who, recently back from travels in Central America, brought a couple bottles of exotic bubbly over to sparkling wine night on Sunday. Thanks, Erin!

Produced by the same Chandon that owns properties around the world, including in Champagne and Napa, this bottle is the product of their facilities in Argentina. Founded in 1959, the Mendoza property is part of a large portfolio of Moet & Chandon sparkling wine houses.

Light, effervescent bubbles, the wine is rather sweet on the assault and remains so upon the palate, dropping off at the end for a semi-clean finish. Floral and stone fruit notes prevailed on the nose as well as on the palate.  Earlier in the day, I’d made some jalapeño poppers from peppers so hot that when stuffing them they singed my nose hairs, and the sweetness of this wine made it a very nice pairing with such nibbles.

Up to the standard of Chandon’s higher-end bottles? Maybe not, but nevertheless this was a fun new experience, a solid pairing with spicy food, and a terrific patio wine to share with friends. 85 points on my scale. Cheers!