2003 Aleph Cabernet Sauvignon Mendoza

This is the tastiest Cabernet Sauvignon I have yet to taste from Argentina, and certainly one of the best cabs I've tasted from anywhere all year. Roberto Rodriguez Canal, part time San Francisco resident, is one of the partners in Platense wines, the company who produces Aleph and brings it to market. According to Roberto: "We do not produce wine to please mass demand. Our wines are not over extracted and definitely not over oaked, we produce limited quantity of wine with its own character." The Aleph name is a tribute to a short story penned by the great master of fiction, Luis Borges. Fruit is sourced from a 3,600 ft high vineyard in the Tupungato sub-zone of Mendoza. Indigenous yeasts are used for fermentation, and the oak aging is a judicious 6 months in French barriques, both of which surely contribute to the overall sense of balance and elegance in the wine. A nose of deep, brambly dark fruit leads to a palate showing terrific, pure dark fruit, with a bit of a meaty character and traces of cocoa powder. The roundness, softness of the tannins and overall balance is a testament to the skillful winemaking and aging time in bottle. This is, without a doubt, my new favorite Argentinean Cabernet. The best part might just be its humble $20 price tag. (Joe Manekin, K&L Argentinean wine buyer)