This wine hails from the Luján de Cujo district, one of several wines included in the estate’s “Terroir Project,” which is designed to highlight the characteristics of these diverse subzones of Mendoza. Along with the sand and gravel typical of most Mendoza vineyards, the source sites for this wine are also said to contain some limestone, lending some bright acidity to the wine.

Talk about Italian influence: This innovative winery estate was founded in 1995 by winemaker Alberto Antonini (Antinori) and entrepreneur Antonio Morescalchi. They put all their resources into the Malbec grape at a time when Cabernet Sauvignon/Bordeaux blends were all the rage, and in recent years, they stopped using new oak barrels entirely, to showcase more clearly the varietal characteristics of the Malbec variety.

Hand-harvested fruit is gravity-fed into small concrete tanks for fermentation on indigenous yeasts for 15 days. The wine is then aged in both concrete vats (75%) and untoasted oak foudres (25%) for 18 months before bottling. It is then aged another six months in bottle before commercial release.

Ink-black with magenta reflections at the rim, this is meaty Malbec, as savory as it is fruity. Concentrated aromas of crushed blackberry, blueberry, Damson plum, grill char, black pepper, and graphite carry over to the full-bodied palate. This wine will benefit from at least 30 minutes in a decanter and a medium-rare grilled ribeye alongside it.