Ricardo Santos, Mendoza (Argentina) Semillon 2020

 This delicious, versatile, highly distinctive wine is among the most under-appreciated bargains available in the USA.  Let’s address those three virtues in order: first, this shows delicious notes of tropical fruits, dried apricots, and fresh figs, along with nice spicy undertone and fine balancing acidity.  Its versatility stems principally from its full body and broad texture, which enables it to pair beautifully with more robust dishes that are all-too-frequently paired with nothing but Chardonnay (e.g., swordfish, salmon, scallops, boudin blanc and the like).  Before departing from the versatility virtue, please note that this is a fine sipping wine too, as it has enough acidity to stay fresh despite having real richness and breadth on the palate.  As for distinctiveness, well, there are very few wines aside from the very best bottlings of Pinot Bianco from southern Austria and northern Italy that provide this sort of richness and fruit-forward flavor profile without prominent wood influence.  This is one of only four Semillons in the world that compete at this ratio of quality to price, and if you buy a bottle of this and write to me, I’ll reply with the names of the other three so that you can try them, too.