2018 Versado Malbec
The colour is a rich, classic dark ruby. The nose is a complex mix of enticing black fruit with hints of herbs and licorice. True to classic old vineyards on the higher altitudes of the ancient Mendoza River bed, with each swirl, captivating aromatics of red and black fruits, with earth and stone, emerge. These nuances of terroir continue on the palate, framing full-bodied expressions of late summer mulberry coulis, and extending into a long, plush finish. ~ Ann Sperling
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Score: 91. “This may just be the most concentrated and yet graceful of all their ‘entry-level’ malbecs to date. There is a whole lot of barrel involved but my how smooth, silken and the whole package turns out to be. Remarkably perfumed in spite of all that wood, acids high, spirited and fine, tannins at peak performance.” ~ Michael Godel, www.winealign.com
“Versado is owned by Peter Gamble and Ann Sperling of Niagara - their ‘other season’ southern Hemisphere project. This is a deep, dark malbec with super-ripe almost raisined fruit. But there is some florality as well, along with chocolate... It is full bodied, dense, thick and sweet-edged... The length is excellent.” ~ David Lawrason, www.winealign.com
A year in the vineyard
There were some cool events in October and November that delayed bud break, but once the season got underway, the vines thrived. The growing conditions in Spring and Summer were excellent, albeit dry. Canopies remained healthy through January as increasing bunch weight burdened the vines. February was hot, so development slowed, but March became cool again, which allowed slow ripening with complex flavour development through to harvest on April 7, 2018. 65% of the harvest went to Reserva and higher quality, while 35% was fermented for this more classically styled Estate label.
Note about bottles: at bottling time, the effects of the world pandemic also affected supply chains in Argentina. As a tiny producer, we were unfortunately low priority for national and international wine-bottle manufacturers, so in order to maintain our wine quality and meet our bottling schedule, we chose to use bottles that are heavier than we’d normally use.
Availability
Ontario
- LCBO Vintages Nov. 19, 2022 #317008
- CRU Wine Merchants, Charles Baker, 905.401.1806