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Beauties of
southern hemisphere

South Africa, Chile and Argentina have many things in common besides interesting cultures and histories. For wine enthusiasts, they have relatively inexpensive land, inexpensive labor and great climates to grow grapes -- all of which translates to good, affordable wines.

South Africa is really a beautiful place. With its combination of mountains and hills near the ocean, its scenery is similar to Hawaii's (but I'll take the warmer waters of the Pacific over the colder Atlantic any day).

Valleys farther inland are perfect for vineyards, offering as much potential as anywhere in the world.

South Africa's most prominent grape is shiraz. The 2002 Eventide Shiraz is outrageous with its lovely mocha, white pepper and black-cherry flavors, followed with a full and supple flavor and a beautiful, lingering finish. At $15.99, this is one of my favorite bargains.

Chile is starting to fulfill its potential as a leading producer of wine. Chile has many European connections, and one of them is the carmenére grape. Carmenére is not widely used in its birthplace, Bordeaux, France, but it has found a home in Chile.

For a long time, carmenére was confused with merlot, but now that the Chileans have correctly identified the grape, they are beginning to make some interesting wines with it. The 2002 Vina La Rosa La Capitana Carmenére ($15.99) is a more interesting version of merlot, with more elegance and a slightly spicier edge. This is a crowd-pleaser.

Argentina, like Chile, is a country of many European immigrants. And just as Chile has made the carmenére grape its own, Argentina has done the same with the malbec grape.

Malbec in Argentina has mutated into a distinct version of the original European strain. Good Argentinian malbecs are inky purple, full of blackberry and blueberry fruit, and have a muscular structure hidden beneath a velvety texture. The 2003 Norton Malbec Reservea ($18.99) is a fine example of this type of wine.

Due to their obscurity, these wines take a little leap of faith to try, but if you take the leap, I think you'll be greatly enriched.

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