2005 Caro Cabernet Sauvignon Malbec

The wines of Los Vascos, produced in Chile by Domaines Barons De Rothschild have all arrived and have been received with great enthusiasm by wine lovers. During the 1980’s, the Rothschild’s also created a number of formidable partnerships in both Argentina and Portugal. The result has been the production of a superb range of wines made under the guidance of the Domaines. The notion of a partnership between Domaines Barons De Rothschild – Lafite and the Catena family in Argentina was first mooted in 1988 – with the idea of fusing French and Argentinian cultures into a new signature wine. The Catena family have been growing grapes for three generations and thoroughly understand the high altitude terroirs of the Mendoza region. The Lafite team contributed its centuries old skills of growing, vinifying and ageing great Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as the art of blending. The top priority of the partnership was to select the finest terroirs to enhance the quality of the two dominant grape varieties – Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. The Malbec is sourced from vines over 30 years old planted at between 800 and 1400 metres above sea level in the region of Vistalba, La Consulta and Gualtallary. The Cabernet is produced from 20 year old vines which have been planted between 950 and 1150 metres above sea level in Agrelo and Tupungato.

Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec have a strong Argentinian identity. The exact blend varies from vintage to vintage, with the Cabernet component usually making up between 65-75% of the blend with the Malbec component between 25-35%. The wine is aged for 14 months in French oak of which 60% is new. The top wine from Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and Nicholas Catena. This wine has classic classed growth structure and will cellar well.

Opaque black crimson colour with black crimson hue. Top note of blackcurrant followed by violet and cassis, delivering a perfumed sniff. The palate delivers flavours of blackcurrant over a layer of liquorice and cedar. The palate is tight knit, with fine grained tannins which are dry but perfectly balanced. Very long aftertaste of cedar, blackcurrant and cassis.
Cellar 5-8 years (2013-2016)
Alc/Vol: 14% Sept08imports