Wines

90 Points! Attractive nose of plums, fresh blueberries, thyme and orange zest. Fruity and crunchy with a medium to full body, easy tannins and fresh finish. Drink now. - JamesSuckling.com

From the importer: The domaine’s top red wine is the cuvée Charles de Batz, which was the original name of d'Artignan. The wine is composed of 90% Tannat with 10% Cabernet Sauvignon from vines that are between 50 and 100 years old. After being completely destemmed, the Cabernet and Tannat are fermented separately in cement tanks. During this time, a bit of micro-oxygenation or microboullage takes place. The wine then goes into oak (50% new) in an underground cellar where it also undergoes malolactic fermentation. After 12 months in wood, it is blended and bottled after a very light filtration.

Very ripe, rich Madiran that takes no prisoners. This wine succeeds in obtaining more fruit than tannin! The color is nearly opaque—wine doesn't get much darker than this. It displays notes of black fruit (blackcurrant and blackberry) along with just a hint of red fruit. There is a cedar-like creaminess to the oak which is extremely well-integrated. Tannins pick up on the finish but, let's face it, this is Madiran and that is to be expected. These tannins seem to dissolve when the wine is matched with richly flavored meats like leg of lamb, duck, goose or game.

90 Points! Blueberries, dark chocolate, blackberries, bark and tobacco leaves on the nose. Dark and inky with a full body, fine tannins and savory finish. Drink now. - JamesSuckling.com

From 100+ Year-Old Vines!

95+ Points! The 2021 Concreto Malbec has to be one of the finest vintages of this wine despite its youth and still shy personality. But there are tons of flowers, wild herbs and berries there waiting to emerge in an insinuating way, with austerity but unfurling layers and layers as the wine sits in the glass. It's incredibly fine-boned with chalky tannins that scream limestone, full of precision and purity. For Sebastián Zuccardi, they didn't do anything different, it's just the character of the year. This is the wine that explains their philosophy without breaking your piggy bank. It is delicious, serious, approachable and with aging potential. What else do you want? I have sometimes confused this wine blind with one of their top bottlings. This is one of the best values around. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

95 Points! Such a brooding nose with black pepper, violet and fresh blueberry and blackberry fruit. Spicy and tight on the palate, but super polished, racy and refined. Medium-to full-bodied red with beautiful tannin tension and expressive, floral notes in the finish. Exemplary and authentic! So delicious now. Why wait? - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! The 2021 Malbec Concreto from Paraje Altamira, Uco Valley was aged in concrete. Purple in the glass. It has a crisp, expressive nose of fresh plum, sour cherry and hints of blackberry, herbs, violets and lavender. Free-flowing but relaxed in the mouth, the palate leaves behind a mixture of chalk and juicy freshness before the sustained, pure fruit finish. The year suited this style perfectly. - Joaquin Hidalgo, Vinous Media

92 Points! The varietal Serie A range includes wines from the "Argentinean" varieties, and the star of this range is, of course, the 2022 Serie A Malbec. Here they search for typicity from Valle de Uco, with freshness and flowers, red rather than black fruit, nice tannic structure and purity; they are not looking for complexity or limestone but varietal character, at which this excels. This has juiciness and structure and is fine-boned. It is very different from the Bonarda in this range. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

97 Points! A complex nose of raspberries, redcurrants, blueberries, spices and dried herbs. It’s medium-bodied with elegant tannins. Round, juicy and layered on the palate, offering great harmony and balance. Fresh, yet complex with a savory finish. Old-vine character. The vines are more than a century old. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

The oldest Malbec vines in Chile, planted 1890!

Les Polissons is produced from 30-year-old vines, this is a generous and open wine that is made to be drunk young. It has broad berry fruits, supple tannins, and refreshing acidity.

94 Points! Blueberries, cassis, lemon peel, sandalwood and mahogany on the nose. Dried basil, too. Medium-bodied with fleshy, chewy tannins and bright acidity. Herbal, spicy and flavorful. Excellent length. 80% malbec, 10% syrah and 10% cabernet franc. Drink after 2023. - JamesSuckling.com

93 Points! The elegant, complex and fresh 2017 Malbec Gran Reserva was produced with one hectare of extremely old vines. It's fermented with a small percentage of Semillon grapes in barriques that are rolled, then the wine matures in those barriques for some 24 months. The wine is still marked by the élevage in barrel with smoky and tasty aromas, and it's hard to get to the delicate floral notes in the nose. It's very long in the finish, with grainy tannins and a serious, dry finish. It needs time to finish absorbing the oak, but it has the stuffing to do so. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

94 Points! Extremely perfumed with violet and blueberry aromas that follow through to a full body with creamy, refined tannins. Wonderful depth, due to the compact fruit and vertical line of tannins. Black pepper to the dark fruit. Better in two or three years. Try after 2022. - JamesSuckling.com

91 Points! A full-bodied red with aromas of black cherries, blackcurrants, violets and black licorice. Tannic and chewy with a firm core of dark fruit. Try from 2023. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! The 2019 Malbec Estate Selection from Uco Valley offers precise and attractive notes of fresh, sour cherry, plum and hints of lavender, violet and thyme. On the palate, it is a mix of flavors framed by fine, reactive tannins. Finishes juicy, with well-integrated freshness and fruity flavors - Joaquín Hidalgo, Vinous Media

97 Points! The site-specific 2018 Malbec Appellation Gualtallary comes from specific soils, two plots that they believe transmit the maximum expression of limestone to Malbec, giving a structured wine with fine-grained tannins but a little wild. The vines are on stony and gravelly soils with a high percentage of limestone and sand with around 3% clay at 1,300 meters in altitude. The grapes fermented in small concrete vats with indigenous yeasts at some 25 degrees Celsius for 15 days. It matured in untoasted 3,500-liter French oak foudres for 18 months and no less than 12 months in bottle. This comes from sandy soils and very low yields that give it chalkier tannins and a savage way. This has a slightly rustic touch, vertical and with some lightness. There's always a fresh touch of aromatic herbs (thyme and rockrose), with a textured palate and very tasty and clean flavors in the finish. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

From importer Charles Neal: 90% old-vine Malbec blended with 10% Tannat. Grapes are destemmed and fermented for 3-4 weeks in stainless steel tanks, then the wine is aged for 12 months in these same stainless steel tanks. It is then transferred to oak barrels, a fifth of which are new each year, where it spends 12 additional months.

97 Points! The 2019 Malbec Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard comes from a vineyard planted in Altamira in 1996 at 1,095 meters above sea level with an old massale selection. It has contained ripeness and 13.7% alcohol from a cooler year in a warmer place. It's a classical Malbec, balanced and elegant but also powerful with fine tannins. It finishes with violets and spice. It's a Malbec with spicy oak. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

93 Points! A blend of 77% Malbec and 23% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Ilaria Malbec has a deep garnet-purple color. It needs a fair bit of swirling to unlock powerful notes of plum preserves, chocolate-covered cherries, and lilacs, leading to suggestions of clove oil and fallen leaves. The full-bodied palate is jam-packed with bright, energetic black fruits and captivating floral sparks, framed by velvety tannins and lovely tension, finishing with great persistence. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent

94 Points! Coming mostly from the Dr. Reid Vineyard in Coombsville, the 2021 Malbec is based on 77% Malbec and 23% Cabernet Sauvignon. A smoking wine, it offers juicy black cherry and blueberry fruits as well as some tobacco, chocolate, and graphite nuances. Medium to full-bodied, with ripe tannins, balance, and a great finish, it's a gorgeous wine. - Jeb Dunnuck