Winemaker Notes
Excellent to pair with lamb, venison, steak, and other red meats.
Blend: 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Malbec
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
If you love massive Argentine reds with purity of fruit and fine oak, then this blend is up your alley. Toasty blackberry aromas come with plenty of oak grain, vanilla and depth. This is profoundly deep on the palate, while toasty blackberry, chocolate and peppery flavors finish with mocha and bracing tannins that aren't too rocky or hard. Drink through 2025.
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James Suckling
Lots of ripe raspberry and blueberry aromas follow thorough to a full body. Soft and velvety tannins and a savory finish. Ripe tannins. A blend of 62% cabernet sauvignon and 38% malbec.
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Wine Spectator
A big, ripe and powerful red, with concentrated flavors of dark plum, mocha and dried blackberry that are framed by plenty of Asian spice notes. Dark chocolate details fill the dense, rich finish, complemented by a creamy texture. Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. Drink now through 2021.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
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.