Altos Las Hormigas Clasico Malbec 2020
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Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
This is a Malbec with an intense ruby red color, showing deep violet hues. It is very expressive on the nose, presenting notes of red fruits, plums, cherries and raspberries. It also has subtle aromas of orange rinds and "jarilla," a typical plant from Mendoza. The
entry in the palate is very fresh, with a soft acidity that travels through the mouth. It is a concentrated, juicy and very balanced wine, with a long and pleasant finish.
It is ideal to pair with various dishes, from red meats to pasta or grilled vegetables.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Nice sour cherries with a streak of white pepper and violets. Medium-bodied, but fleshy. Ripe, almost creamy tannins extend to the finish, but are still juicy and vibrant.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The red 2020 Malbec Clásico was produced with 80% grapes from Luján de Cuyo and 20% grapes from Valle de Uco, mostly their own grapes, all in stainless steel and vinified by plot with their native yeasts. It matured in concrete for nine months. It's ripe without excess and develops a full array of aromas and flavors but keeping 13.5% alcohol, very fresh for the warm year. It's juicy, complex beyond fruit, a little herbal, medium-bodied and with very fine tannins. It's clean, expressive and open, a wine that has to be approachable from when you pull the cork. They are working to increase the drinkability, which will be seen more and more in the following years. Rating: 90+
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In 1995 Alberto Antonini, a well-known Tuscan winemaker, and Antonio Morescalchi, a young entrepreneur, took a trip to visit the burgeoning wine areas of South America. It only took one stop to find what they were looking for. They were immediately impressed by the vineyards thriving in the high altitude and dry climate of Mendoza, and were captivated by the whispered traditions and blend of cultures.
They returned to Tuscany powerfully impressed not only by the region, but also by the unexplored potential of Malbec, a grape that had a strong local tradition but was largely ignored and misunderstood. While the rest of the wine world saw Mendoza struggling to shed its bulk wine image, the two young Italians saw Mendoza as a place where traditional viticultural values and unblemished land could be reinvigorated with a modern winemaking approach and international experience. Instead of planting Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, as many others were doing during the 1990s, the team decided to invest their confidence in Malbec. Today, Malbec is the varietal for which Argentina is best known.
Against all odds they cemented their vision to become Terroir Specialists Shortly after, two friends and business partners, also enthused by the idea, joined the venture: Attilio Pagli, a renowned Tuscan winemaker with two 100 point-scoring wines in his personal record and Carlos Vazquez, an Argentine Agronomist, who work for 20 years with the early Catena group, planting new varieties, developing previously unknown vineyard sites and contributing greatly to the qualitative change of Argentine viticulture early on.