ALTOCEDRO 2010 MALBEC ANO CERO

  

These days you can hardly shake a stick without hitting yet another sub $10 ‘value’ Malbec.  A lot of importers are jumping on the Argentine bandwagon as there seems to be an unlimited supply of ‘bargain labels’, and if you are down there and can’t find one, you will likely find someone who will make you one.  But, as you might note by the quotes we put on key words like value, just because something is inexpensive doesn’t necessarily make it a deal.  So many of the offerings we taste are Argentine versions of the same ‘tank farm’ wines some folks make here in California.  They are dark, and have some vaguely varietal fruit, but are typically monochromatic in flavor and a bit plodding on the palate.  But Altocedro has been a go-to here since before the newest wave of ‘value’ Malbec.  The stuff has lift, dimension, and that precise, dark spicy plum fruit that is the key turn on in this emerging varietal, spice and vanilla notes adding to the mix.  We have done our share of pioneering Argentine wines, but it’s always good to have dependable anchors, and this former wine of the month has been just that. The  spicy 2009, from what appears to be an excellent vintage, is one of the best of this series.