2012 Viña Cobos Malbec Marchiori Vineyard

Full ruby-red color. Musky aromas of dark cherry, currant, menthol, rose petal and violet are complicated by strong soil tones. Voluptuous, deep and sweet but with terrific energy and verve to the seamless flavors of black raspberry, brown spices and chocolate. Wonderfully seamless, long wine with noble, slowly building tannins. As sexy as this beauty is today, I'd give it four years in the cellar to burn off some of its baby fat.

Drink Dates: 2018-2025

The top of the range, the 2012 Cobos Malbec Marchioli Vineyard is sourced form the oldest vineyards in the Marchiori estate in Perdriel in the Lujan de Cuyo department of Mendoza. The wine fermented in stainless steel vats and matured in brand new French oak barrels for some seven months. It's a ripe, heady and floral Malbec with plenty of notes from the creamy oak, but it feels like the fruit has been able to integrate the 100% new oak quite well, which is better than some of its Bramare siblings. Perhaps the natural concentration of the juice from these 80-year-old vines helps the full-bodied palate to feel quite integrated and show good freshness. There is a special vibrancy to the fruit that is structured with abundant, fine-grained, sweet tannins. I guess this one will develop nicely in bottle. 7,776 bottles produced.

Drink Dates: 2016-2022

Author: Luis Gutierrez