2017 Mendel Mendoza Malbec
SKU #1461045
93 points
James Suckling
Some quite tarry, raw and wild-berry aromas here, leading to a palate that delivers a very ripe, fresh and juicy set of dark plums and berries. This has impressive concentration in the mouth. Drink or hold.
(3/2019)
93 points
Wine Enthusiast
Great midtier value is found in this full-force Malbec from a powerful vintage. A blueberry pie aroma is ripe to the max, alongside a whiff of graphite. The fully extracted palate bursts with cassis and berry flavors, while the more this breathes, the less heavy it seems. Drink through 2028.
(11/2019)
92 points
Vinous
Bright saturated ruby. Deep, ripe aromas of blackberry, tropical dark chocolate and licorice, plus a subtle note of spicy oak (one-third new French for 12 months). Rich, sappy, mouthfilling Malbec with a chocolatey ripeness but also harmonious framing acidity to its dark fruit flavors. Boasts an obvious old-vines creaminess and depth (the vines are 91 years of age) and opens out horizontally on the back end, finishing with refined tannins and rising floral length. A distinctly European style of Malbec without any heaviness. (ST)
(9/2019)
91 points
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
“Editor’s Choice” The dry and clean 2017 Malbec is more structured and concentrated than the 2016, with notes of black fruit, but it keeps the freshness. It's approachable, and the oak is nicely integrated, always in used barrels and now in larger-volume ones to minimize the impact of the wood in the wine. It's a step up from the Lunta in concentration, volume and depth, but it follows the same classical, balanced and approachable profile. It comes from different plots of the same vineyard, and the wines behave differently.
(3/2019)
K&L Notes
Mendel wines classically combine Roberto de la Mota’s prestigious winemaking skills and tremendously old vineyards to make Mendoza’s most elegant wines. Proprietor and long-time wine lover, Anabelle Sielecki, partnered with Roberto to transform her family’s historic 1928 vineyard into the respected estate it is today. She honors her father, a hardworking immigrant and successful businessman, by putting his first name, Mendel, on the label. Using his French winemaking experience, Roberto has led Argentina’s winemaking movement toward world-class production. The finesse and elegance in his wines are revered and respected.
VINEYARD & WINEMAKING DETAILS: The grapes come from the Mayor Drummond vineyard in Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza where the average age is 89 years. The wine is aged 12 months in 100% oak barrels
