Concreto Malbec Zuccardi, Paraje Altamira, Uco Valley, Mendoza, Argentina 2017
100% Malbec unoaked, 50% whole bunch maceration.
This full bodied Malbec comes from high altitude vineyards (1100m) in Paraje Altamira, where the soil is bare (20cm on average) which leads to one of the best Malbec's you will find as you will see from this review in Wine Enthusiasts top 100 wines of 2018.
"Calm and pure blackberry and cassis aromas feed into an intense palate with freshness and rubbery tannins. While not loud, this goes heavy on the gas and features edgy dark-berry flavors. A rock-solid finish confirms the structure on this cement-fermented-and-aged Malbec from Paraje Altamira in the Uco Valley. Drink through 2025." 93/100 MS Winemag.com
"This is a unique wine for Mendoza with a cool-fruit and serious slate character. Undertones of dried herbs and bark. Full body, integrated fruit and tannins. Wet earth, too. Reminds me of the reds in Spain's Galicia, but so new in Argentina. Drink now but better in 2020."96 James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com
"The aromatic expression of the 2017 Concreto Malbec is completely different from the 2016. This is a lot more open, floral and gentle, with a more polished and sleek palate with more integrated acidity. A wine of tremendous energy, it was kept in concrete all its life (hence the name) until it was bottled. 25,000 bottles were filled in December 2018, just before the next harvest." 94 Luis Gutierrez - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate