If you had asked me if I liked Malbec a couple of years ago, I would have probably disclosed to you that it wasn’t one of my favourite grape varietals. I have since learned though, that Malbec is not the grape that I thought it was. It can in fact be many things: fruit forward, peppery, floral or savoury, as well as balanced, concentrated and complex.
Over the last year I have had many opportunities to taste and learn more about Malbec, and several of these great opportunities have occurred during World Malbec Day celebrations.
World Malbec Day was first celebrated in 2011. The celebration was established by Wines of Argentina, who were tasked with bringing Argentinian wines to the world, with Malbec as their global ambassador.
World Malbec Day is celebrated each year on April 17th. It is believed that on this day in 1853 the president of Argentina, Domingo Faustino Sarmienot, sent Michal Aime Pouget (a French soil expert) to France to bring back new vines; one of the vines he returned with was Malbec.
Malbec as a varietal has a long history in France and is one of the six grape varietals allowed in red Bordeaux. It is a thin skinned grape, like Pinot Noir, and it requires even more heat than Cabernet Sauvignon to ripen. Malbec is a difficult grape to grow and it is quite susceptible to disease, frost and mildew.
In the mid 1800’s many vineyards in France were ruined by the “Great French Wine Blight”, a Phylloxera (an insect related to aphids) outbreak which resulted in the demise of many of their delicate Malbec vines. The prevalence of Malbec in France was further diminished in 1956 when a frost killed off more than 75% of the crop.
In Argentina the high elevation and dry, sunny weather produce ideal conditions under which the Malbec varietal has thrived, exhibiting few of the weaknesses it had in France. In the 1990’s Argentina started to jockey Malbec into position as their star varietal and now it is their largest export.
This year for World Malbec Day I had the pleasure of tasting the 2013 Catena Alta Malbec from Bodega Catena Zapata.
Bodega Catena Zapata
Bodega Catena Zapata has a relatively long history in Argentina. Nicola Catena sailed to Argentina from Italy in 1898, planting his first Malbec vineyard in 1902. Eventually Nicola’s eldest son, Domingo Catena, took over the family business. Domingo believed that Malbec could produce outstanding fine wines and he made Bodega Catena Zapata one of the largest vineyard holders in Mendoza. In the 1970’s it was Domingo’s turn to pass the torch to his son, Nicolàs Catena Zapata, who has a PhD in Economics. In 1980, shortly after taking stewardship over the family business, Nicolàs was asked to be a visiting scholar at the University of California, and it was an offer that he could not refuse.
For Nicolàs, California was the first wine region to successfully challenge the prestige of French wines; this took place at the Judgement of Paris in 1976. The “Judgement” was a blind tasting where the 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon from Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars placed first amongst a selection of wines from Bordeaux and California. Needless to say, Nicolàs was intrigued by the region and thus he and his wife would spend their weekends in California exploring the wineries.
Nicolàs left California inspired. He now had a clear vision – he wanted to make Argentinian wines that could stand on a world stage. As soon as he returned home, he sold off the branch of the winery that produced table wines, keeping only the fine winemaking division of Bodega Catena Zapata. He set to work scouting for the best vineyard locations in Argentina and premium Malbec clones.
Sadly, in 1985 Domingo Catena passed away, leaving Nicolàs to see if his father’s dream for Malbec could become a reality. He worked for five years in their 85-year-old Angélica Vineyard to see if Malbec could produce the quality wines he was striving for. 1994 was the first vintage that Nicolàs was satisfied with and, when it was released to the world, it was met with accolades from Robert Parker and ranked as the number one Malbec by The Wall Street Journal.
2013 Catena Alta Malbec $54.99
The grapes were sourced from five blocks of vines located in four estate-owned vineyards, including the infamous Angélica Vineyard. Each block was treated separately and harvested for optimal acidity and ripeness. Wild yeast fermentation and maceration took place over 10-35 days. Both alcoholic and malolactic fermentation were completed in barrels, ranging in size from 225-500 liters, with active battonage (stirring of the spent yeast cells). The wine was aged for 18 months in French Oak and it is unfined and unfiltered.
After two hours in a decanter the nose was quite fresh, showing bramble, blackberry and black cherry, followed by star anise, violet and toast. On the palate this full bodied Malbec produced very ripe black cherries, dried mission figs, vanilla and mint. The palate is juicy and savoury with velvety tannins and a lingering finish. This wine was lovely on its own, but it also paired well with a tomato-based beef stew.