“Malbec with the ethereal structure of Pinot Noir… where cool-climate viticulture on mountain slopes is confounding everything we once knew about Argentine reds. The results couldn’t be more delightful. Places like Gualtallary, in Tupungato, climb from 3,200 to 5,400 feet above sea level, stressing the vines and producing light, nimble reds.” – Vinous

Sunday is for… HIGH elevation, HIGH scoring, massively discounted (BOOM - 60%), world-class Malbec! Like this beauty, which cranked out 95 points from Wine Advocate and a 94 from Descorchados, the local expert critic. We’re talking dead-serious, primetime Malbec at the top of its class for $34!!

No wonder, just like our beloved Catena, Lagarde is one of the oldest wineries in Mendoza, dating back to the 19th century. They’re intensely committed to perfecting every aspect of farming and winemaking. It all starts with the biodynamically farmed, gnarly old vines dating back to the late 1800s, painstakingly cultivated high up in the Andes range, soaring nearly 5,000 feet above sea level, as some of the highest vineyards in the world. From up there, it’s all hand sorting, native yeast ferments, and low intervention winemaking focused on bringing out the purest representation of the varietal.

Vinous recaps the recent history: “In the early 1980s, the Argentine businessman and wine enthusiast Enrique Pescarmona, bought the Lagarde winery and its vineyards. Over the next few decades, he converted production into high-end wines, harvesting from vineyards first planted in 1906 in Drummond and several others in Perdriel and Gualtallary… The highest-altitude vineyard Aguas Verdes is located 4,600 feet above sea level and is the core of the refreshing wines made by Lagarde. A member of the Luján de Cuyo DOC since it was founded, Lagarde pioneered the development of styles suitable for cellar aging. Today, the winery is run by Lucía and Sofía Pescarmona, Enrique’s daughters, with oenology supervised by Juan Roby.”

Surely this must be one of the best examples of Malbec in the world. In the glass, it’s all black and blue fruits with an insane violet florality that pops from the glass. Once sipped, the beautiful core of luminous red and purple fruit ebbs and flows from blueberry to plum to Bing cherry, with a fascinating minerality creeping in the back with a touch of cinnamon and spice. A long, long finish shows a perfectly integrated touch of oak that adds an alluring vanilla streak.

All that for $34?! And it was $85 upon release! That’s $50+ a bottle you keep in your pockets, Ops.

Just can’t think of a better value that shows how Argentine Malbec can hang with the big dogs of Napa and Bordeaux! You’d have to spend WAY more than $100 to find something similar up North.

Apparently, thirsty fans in Buenos Aires and London are hooked on this, and they grab the lion’s share, as the container landed short of our hopes, so please accept our apologies, as it will sell out.

95 Points – Wine Advocate “I love the nuanced nose of the 2020 Primeras Viñas Malbec Gualtallary - it’s varietal, elegant and complex, with tons of flowers, herbs and aromatic plants. It has a fine texture and chalky, elegant tannins. This has 13.6% alcohol and very good freshness, acidity and terrific balance. Superb. Drink 2019-2026.”

94 Points – Descorchados “For Primeras Viñas, Lagarde uses vineyards planted in 2005 at an altitude of 1,380 meters in the Gualtallary zone in the northern Uco Valley. It’s a wine with a tremendous sense of place, with that exuberance of fruity flavors and aromas combined with herbal notes that’s so typical of Gualtallary in particular, and of Uco’s mountain wines in general. Floral notes, more evident in the mouth, make this Malbec a fresh expression of the variety, with soft tannins and juicy acidity. For lamb curry.”