Winemaker Notes
El Gran Enemigo Single Vineyard Agrelo is deep purple with red highlights. Its aromas are intense and elegant. Cabernet Franc brings light notes of eucalyptus and thyme. Malbec brings notes of ripe black fruits, blackberries and black cherries. The oak aging gives a touch of chocolate and vanilla to blend. Excellent balance and elegant. This wine was made in honor of the old Pomerol style where Cabernet Franc was blended with the other Bordeaux varieties.
This wine pairs beautifully with roast chicken, turkey, duck, and other game birds along with seared steak and veal.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This is a crazy nose with crushed cloves, black pepper and blueberries. Full body. Dense, polished tannins and a wonderfully fruity and intense palate. So much clove and spice at the finish. A joy to taste and drink. Cabernet franc with 15% malbec. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
As with all the other wines, the 2016 Gran Enemigo Agrelo Single Vineyard showed more freshness than its sibling from 2015, and the exotic note of Indian bazaar—a recurring note in this bottling—was subtler and in the background, leaving room for more nuance and filigree but with that curry-like twist in there. The palate shows more tension and feels more fluid, with a nice core of cherry-pit freshness. This is surprisingly good, because the year was not easy in the zone, and this clearly transcends the conditions of the harvest.
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Wine Enthusiast
Black berry and dark plum aromas are a touch rubbery and roasted at first, but more open after airing. A smooth but robust palate is full but balanced, with spicy, peppery berry flavors that are lightly herbal but not green. A sappy, jammy finish plays up the herbal side of this blend from a wet and difficult year. Drink through 2024.
Cabernet Franc, a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon, is the subtler and more delicate of the Cabernets. Today Cabernet Franc produces outstanding single varietal wines across the wine-producing world. Somm Secret—One of California's best-kept secrets is the Happy Canyon appellation of Santa Barbara. Here Cabernet Franc shines as a single varietal wine or in blends, expressing sumptuous fruit, savory aromas and polished tannins.
By far the largest and best-known winemaking province in Argentina, Mendoza is responsible for over 70% of the country’s enological output. Set in the eastern foothills of the Andes Mountains, the climate is dry and continental, presenting relatively few challenges for viticulturists during the growing season. Mendoza, divided into several distinctive sub-regions, including Luján de Cuyo and the Uco Valley, is the source of some of the country’s finest wines.
For many wine lovers, Mendoza is practically synonymous with Malbec. Originally a Bordelaise variety brought to Argentina by the French in the mid-1800s, here it found success and renown that it never knew in its homeland where a finicky climate gives mixed results. Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot and Pinot Noir are all widely planted here as well (and sometimes even blended with each other or Malbec). Mendoza's main white varieties include Chardonnay, Torrontés, Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon.