April is Malbec Month – Here are Four to Consider

Malbec is the preferred red wine in much of South America, and is by far the most prevalent in Argentina, widely grown and widely drunk.  In Chile, it competes with the more traditional European varietals, and is frequently blended with them.  Malbec is also one of the traditional varietals of Bordeaux, and the real home of the Malbec grape is in Cahors, France, where the Black Wine of Cahors is a big, tannic wine, inky black in color.  In Argentina and Chile the grape produces a much different style of juice.

To be honest, Malbec has never been my favorite varietal.  It makes good wines, but my impression was that it didn’t make great wines. Frequently they seem a bit rustic, which in itself can certainly be good.  The term muddled can also apply, with the wine failing to deliver a clear picture of the fruit.  Over the years that impression has changed a bit, and several opportunities to taste high end Malbecs from Argentina and Chile has demonstrated that they can, indeed, be great.  They can also be very good at modest prices, making Malbec a good value wine.  Lastly, I have found them increasingly reliable, and will frequently order a glass of Malbec from a well known producer in a restaurant, confident I will be getting a good glass.

With the intention of increasing world exposure and awareness of Argentine Malbec, in 2011 Wines of Argentina established April 17th as Malbec World Day. Albeit somewhat contrived, as all marketing pushes are, this none the less has been part of a huge increase in Malbec drinking, most of which is from South America. Today there are many choices available, both as a varietal and in blends. You can check out World Malbec Day 2018 here.

Let’s take a look at four reasonably priced options currently available, all quite different in character.  Two are from Argentina, and two are from Chile.

2016 Concha y Toro Casillero del Diablo Malbec – Concha y Toro is a Chilean producer, located just outside of Santiago, but they make wines from vineyards in many different areas of the country.  This particular wine is a dark. purple red in color.  At opening it was very, very oak dominated, with dark fruit looming underneath, as well as earthy notes and a little floral too.  On the palate the wine is full bodied and chewy, with black plum and black cherry, along with a little savory quality as well.  The tannins are firm, and the wine has good acid and balance.  The oak is a bit overdone for my tastes, but it does integrate more with time.  I would let this sit in the decanter, or the glass, for an hour.  Better the second day.   Retails around $11, and has a lot of stuffing for a wine that price.

2016 Concha y Toro Gran Reserva Serie Ribeiras Malbec – this is part of their Gran Reserva series of wines that come from vineyards located near riverbanks.  We have reviewed several others over the past few months (you can see one here), and they have been quite good.  This particular wine is also a very dark, purple red in color.  On the nose black plum, spice and herbal notes fight through significant oak.  This is a bold wine on the palate as well, and somewhat in your face.  The oak is always there, and the wine is carrying stiff tannins.  There is a long, somewhat spicy finish.  This is another wine which begs for decanting, and the next day was smoother, almost pure purple in color, and had some blackberry fruit emerging.  It was very good with some air time.  This has 10% Syrah blended in with the Malbec.  Retails near $17, and a good value.

2016 Trivento Reserve Malbec – now we travel not very far, really, but over the Andes to the high plateau around Mendoza, Argentina.  This is serious Malbec country, although you can find Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and other red grapes now as well.  The Trivento Reserve Malbec is a dark red in color, and very transparent and brilliant.  The nose is an absolute spice bomb at opening, but that fades a bit with air time.  Then the fruit starts to emerge.  It’s more of a ripe fruit, with prune and dried apricot coming to mind.  The spice was gone the second day, which was interesting.  It’s full bodied with solid tannins and good balance.  There is a long finish at the end, which brings little touch of orange peel.  It’s a solid wine for the price of $11.

2015 Trivento Golden Reserve Malbec – this is a premium line at Trivento, the Golden Reserve series, and the wine is made from hand picked grapes fermented in stainless after a long maceration.  Twelve months in French oak barrels, and another 12 months in bottle, finish the process.  This is immediately noticeable as a step up in quality from the wines above.  It’s dark red, with a big nose of red fruit, along with a touch of blue fruit.  There is some oak, but it is subtle, and there are some floral notes.  On the palate it is rich and fruit driven, with that pure core of fruit the great wines all possess.  Wonderful balance prevails throughout, and the wine is also very fresh.  The tannins are firm, but really integrated and covered seamlessly by the fruit and acid.  You get the tannin more at the end of a very long finish.  This is really good, shows what Malbec can do, and is in a different league than the other three wines above.  It’s a bit more expensive, at around $21, but at that price we still say it’s a great value and will put it on our Value List.  Well done!

You’ve probably had Malbec before.  We’re sure you will have it again.  These are all worth the money, so pick a price range and celebrate Malbec World Day on April 17th.  Or just celebrate the current day.  Do try the Trivento Golden Reserve, it is special.  Now we need to try the other wines in that line to see if the quality holds.  The journey continues.

A votre santé!

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