The South African Sommelier Association (SASA) recently hosted brothers Luis and Martin Mantegini:  Sommeliers from Argentina.  They were in SA to compete in the ironman and just by-the-by, tell us more about Argentinian Malbec.  They delivered fascinating insight into the Argentinian wine industry and of course, Malbec as a varietal.

Some interesting facts we learnt:  Of the almost 260,000 hectare under vine in Argentina (mostly in the central western region of the country) roughly 80% is planted in Mendoza.  Argentina’s wine growing region(s) are completely isolated from the influence of water being very far from the Atlantic coastline to the east and blocked by the Andes mountain range on the west thus creating the textbook example of a continental climate.  The region also has around 335 sunny days a year and they have to irrigate the vines due to the low rainfall.

In Argentina they rely on range of altitude to develop complexity in their wines.  As an example:  Berries grown at 3,000m above sea level would be smaller and develop thicker skins to protect itself against the onslaught of the sun, thus adding intensity in flavour and depth in colour.  The vines can even have a hang time of 4 months after veraison until full ripeness – producing wines that are quite assessable when young.

Mendoza as a wine region has relatively poor soil (sandy and rocky) that is very alkaline and thus produces wines with a very low acidity (something that is corrected by acidifying in the cellar).  The area has a range of 600 to 1,700 metres above sea level.

The idea behind the New World region of Argentina is to produce wines that can be consumed immediately, so the wines must be accessible when young, with firm tannin that is not aggressive and a fruit profile that is not too jammy on the palate.

We tasted a remarkable range of wines brought from Argentina.  Should you be able to lay your hands on some of these examples, you won’t be disappointed (especially with the almost on par exchange rate).  Malbec was brought to Argentina in 1853…they’ve done some pretty smart things with it since then.

Mention “Malbec” to any South African and you immediately think spice, dust, heavy tannin, stain-your-clothes inky blackness.  Decent Argentinian Malbec delivers almost no spice, but abundant dark, plummy fruit, intense concentration, manageable tannin and a very interesting herbaceous finish that almost cleanses your palate so you’re ready for the next sip.

An interesting fact is that 80% of the Argentinian wine production is consumed in Argentina; they clearly love their wine!  Virtually no wine is imported from other countries.  I would happily aid in the consumption of Argentinian Malbec.