Weeknight meals should be fast, easy, and delicious. The one thing that stands up to this formula time after time is a burger. Whether you prefer turkey, veggie, beef, or buffalo, burgers are the perfect crowd pleaser. Throw in an inexpensive, high quality wine and your weeknight meal will shine!

The Wine: Amado Sur is a riff on the Spanish “Southern Love.” Owned by Bodega Trivento in Argentina (and ultimately by Concho Y Toro in Chile), Amado Sur has created a distinctively Argentinian Malbec with a twist, it is a blend.

2014 Amado Sur Malbec Mendoza Argentina ($15): Crafted of 70% Malbec, 20% Bonarda, and 10% Syrah; clear deep ruby in the glass; clean medium aromas of ripe red and black berries, milk chocolate, candied violets, smoke, sweet spice notes, licorice, damp tobacco, and vanilla; dry medium acidity balanced with medium silky tannins that coat the palate in a juicy mouth-feel, full-body wine that has a medium+ finish; this is a well-structured wine that is elegant and round, tastes above its price point.

The Food: Malbec is a versatile wine; however, I tend to enjoy it most with beef. I suppose that makes sense because Argentina is known for their love of beef. So if I am grabbing a Malbec chances are good I am pairing it with some sort of beef or red meat such as buffalo or lamb.

My Choice: As much as I enjoy cooking I do not always have time to prepare an elaborate meal during the week. However, I have a lot of wine samples and since most wine is crafted to pair with food I do not want to leave you hanging on a possible pairing suggestion. On this night I chose to pair the Amado Sur Malbec with a good ole fashion burger. Nothing fancy either, just added some spices, threw it on the grill, topped with hickory smoked Gouda, tomato, avocado and a side of home baked fries and dinner was done.

The Results: The men in my house are always up for a homemade burger and fries. The wine was lush and juicy, an ideal pairing for a burger. What can I say? It was not fancy but it was delicious. And in the end this is real life, which sometimes means easy weeknight dinners. But it is MUCH better and healthier than fast food. Wanna dress up a weeknight burger? Then I highly suggest a bottle of Amado Sur Malbec, it is distributed nation-wide.

More about Trivento from Excelsior Wines:

When in the mid-1990s Concha y Toro, Chile’s leading wine producer, announced its successful purchase a collection of vineyards (now accounting for 3,185 acres) in the Mendoza region of neighboring Argentina, there was little doubt on either side of the Andes that change was in the air. Wind is the agent of change, so it was only fitting that the new venture was named “ Trivento” (Three Winds), a whimsical reference to three winds that sweep through Mendoza and are such a distinguishing feature of the region’s climate and environment. Trivento’s principal vineyards are located in the Uco Valley, Maipu, Lujan de Cuyo, San Martin and Rivadavia districts of Mendoza – a wine region that exemplifies the advantages of high-altitude viticulture. Here, significant differences between day and night temperatures help minimize the risk of pests and disease. Vineyards that receive barely 8 inches of rainfall a year are irrigated with natural snow melt from the Andes. Not least, vineyards can count on the beneficial effects of the three seasonal winds for which the Trivento winery is named. Fast-forward to the present day and Trivento can point to a flourishing international reputation as a leading name in fine quality wines from Argentina’s premier wine region.  The winery’s latest release, Amado Sur, honors the marriage between the vines and the foothills of the Andes Mountains, where grapes develop complexity and unique expressions that could only be described as – a love of the south – or Amado Sur.

*Disclosure: This wine was provided to me as a sample; all thoughts and opinions are my own.

My Song Selection: Keep kicking up those weeknight meals with smooth wines and tunes.

Get your own bottle of Amado Sur Malbec and let me know what song you pair with it. Cheers!