#33 Malbec – 467 grapes left

Full body wine with dark fruits forward and some spice. 94JS.

WINE DETAILS:

  • Grape: Malbec
  • Alcohol: 13.9%
  • Wine: Alta Collection
  • Vintage: 2017
  • Winery: Tapiz Winery
  • Country/Region: Uco Valley, Mendoza, Argentina
  • Date: 10/27/20
  • Distributor: Aficionado Wine & Spirits

Nerd Alert: Malbec is the dominant red varietal in Cahors, France where the Appellation Controlée regulations for Cahors require a minimum content of 70%. The grape was first introduced to Argentina in the mid 19th century when provincial governor Domingo Faustino Sarmiento instructed the French agronomist Michel Pouget to bring grapevine cuttings from France to Argentina. Prior to Prohibition in the United States, Malbec was a significant variety in California used mainly for blended bulk wine production. The French ampelographer Pierre Galet has documented over a thousand different synonyms for Malbec, stemming in part from its peak period when it was growing in 30 different departments of France.

Personal Note: Quite a curious unintended transition. Going from a wine created by an argentinian in #31, to trying the argentininan grape Malbec. Truth be told I was never a big malbec drinker. Nothing against the grape. The strength of that wine with a good cut of meat has always been enjoyable. But, just like it happened to me with Priorat wines, early in my wine days I was told they were drunk young, and rustic and hard and…that just wasn’t my bag. And then just like it happened to me with Priorat, I tasted an aged malbec and my opinion was never the same. Since then this grape at the hand of incredible gifted winemakers continues to evolve into something else. This wine in particular got great ratings and it wasn’t expensive either. One thing I’ve been taking notice of, mainly on account of drinking a lot more wine for this list, is it’s life after opening. Some wines die after the first day in the fridge, others, like this one, lasted but two days intact. Don’t know if it would have lasted longer on account of me drinking the whole thing in two days.

#roadto500grapes #wines #winelovers #singlevarietal #singlevarietalwines #malbec #winetime #mendozawines #redwine #tapiz

*Sources for the wine facts are from: Wine Searcher, Wikipedia, Vivino, wine.com, and the wineries websites.

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