To be conservative, I would suggest using the Xoom rate, check website at www.xoom.com

Guess where they get the Malbec from....... ;) :p

Hm.. I have a niggling feeling the answer is Argentina but how did that come about?

I'd like to try out some Argentinian wines too, but they're not easy to find in Asia. Would Hong Kong be a good place to find them?

tokyo(in asia) offers many malbecs

Run of the mill Malbecs will be available in Hong Kong, the better stuff is harder to obtain, the best wines made in Argentina mostly don't leave the country, unless you have the right contact that's ITB. Please feel free to contact me for details on how to get wines delivered to your doorstep.

Cheers,
Alex / Gaucho100K

disclaimer: I have a horse in this race, Im an EZE based Fine Wine Merchant

Thanks, I'll have to check some of these out at my local Spec's.

Pricing Update.......

Given the recent meltdown of the Argentine Peso vs. the US Dollar, you can now enjoy even better values on your favorite wines from Mendoza, Salta and Patagonia. Just make sure you can pay your purchase without plastic money and lock in some amazing values !!!! ^

I picked up several bottles of this blend recently for about US$20 each:

http://www.urracawines.com/descargas...NGLEY_2007.pdf

I decanted one the other night and served it alongside a grilled NY strip and a baguette of good SF sourdough. Really, really nice ^

Yes... Weinert has indeed reduced its US presence, they are more focused on Brazil and Asia these days. I regularly get requests from my US clients for bottles of the Estrella series, the top of the line labels from Weinert.

Feel free to mail or PM me if you need any assistance. I regularly ship to Texas... :)

New Malbec to look out for....

Bodega Aniello Malbec 006 - Patagonia

^

Hello, I'm in Tokyo now; where would be a good place to get Argentine Malbec?

Im afraid I cant help you with a local contact in the Wine Trade.... but if you are staying at a large chain hotel, I would say you get the Concierge to do a little homework for you.

I would do a little expectations management as not too many bodegas are available in Japan.... but you may be able to get a few labels from Catena, Trapiche, Achaval Ferrer and maybe Terrazas de los Andes.

Also, if you care to PM or email me, I can provide you with more information on an alternate solution that may be of interest to you.... this would make it possible for you to get any wine produced in Argentina delivered to your doorstep.

The other day treated with BBQ Black Angus Ribeye and a great wine, 2010 Catena Alta Malbec. Although drinking great right now, it will improve after some years cellaring. Good value wine for $35
^

Looking for this in Cali, any suggestions? LA area preferable.

Weinert has been in the rumor-mill quite a bit recently, and sadly, the news appears not to be very good. From heavy losses to acute financial woes... the company is apparently up for sale. They have also been having long time distribution issues here in Argentina, with a very irrational marketing strategy that has been on and off.... sad for a producer with such a history.

Lets hope the company gets sold and passes on to someone with the means to bring back this House to the place it deserves.

On the subject of Winery sales.... half of Mendoza is up for sale... other names on the market include Luigi Bosca, Salentein, and various others. Bodegas are to be had, and some of the asking prices are not unreasonable if you can manage your investment expectations properly.

I can help you source the wine, but sadly it wont be from a US Source. This producer is currently not represented in the North American Market. They will eventually get there, but this wont be until the 2nd half of 2015, according to what I have been informed.

Please feel free to email or PM me if you need further assistance.

Good news: the best Malbec in LHR T5 Flounge today was:

2009 Catena Alta Malbec

Bad news: that was the only Malbec offered

:)

I think its quite a coup for the grape that it was even featured.... almost in the backyard of the Mecca of Wine.... :p

Tonight's dinner at the grill started with a 2011 QUARA Malbec, Viña Cabra Corral, Valle de Cafayate. Despite somewhat young, it had a rather full taste, although not to the level of the Catena, had at LHR T5 Flounge, last week-end

I just bought 5 bottles of Mendel Fina Remota 2009.

A very drinkable wine, went down well with my fillet steak

Quara belongs to the Lavaque Family.

If you liked the "regular" Malbec, you should try to seek out the Quara Single Vineyard series and also their Felix Lavaque which is an excellent Malbec based Meritage blend. I consider the Felix to be the best Blend made in Salta.

The Finca Remota is indeed an excellent Malbec.

Using the style of this wine, here is a shortlist of Malbecs I would suggest you seek out.......

Escorihuela DON Malbec
Apartado Gran Malbec
Flichman Grand Vineyards Parcela 26 Malbec
Cobos Malbec Marchiori Vineyards
Judas Gran Reserva Malbec
Nico by Luca Malbec
Nicolas Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino

Planning on a couple of hours trying out wines at JFK BA Galleries First, I was shocked to find my flight cancelled due to MX. My new flight started boarding the second I came out of security (!).

Well, still enough time for a glass of wine... :cool:

Decided on the only Malbec on display, 2011 Luigi Bosca Malbec, Single Vineyard.

Rather full-bodied, despite it's age, it had a nice spicy taste. Will check my wine store's possibility to get me one or two cases of this wine, maybe a couple of years older, if possible.

Looking forward to comments from Gaucho100K, FT's Malbec guru :)

As Ive posted on these boards before, Im not the biggest fan of Luigi Bosca. It would be unfair to say that they don't make good wines, but Im just not fond of their house-style.... I have at least 10-12 other producers that I would suggest over Luigi Bosca.

All this doesn't mean that I would not recommend you purchase this... it all depends on what you are looking for and what your budget is. Also, I cant seem to make out from your profile where you are based, and I need to know that to be able to make precise recommendations on some feasible alternatives, should you want to source the wines in your local area.

Please feel free to PM and/or contact me directly by email for further assistance.

Cheers,
Alex / Gaucho100K

My local Costcos in Southern California have been selling the 2010 Norton Privada for $17.99, and the 2011 Norton Reserve Malbec for $10.99. Both of these are, IMHO, serious bargains, with the Privada being more massive and ageworthy, with the Reserve Malbec having a bit more finesse for near-term drinking.

Yes... the Privada for under $20 is a steal, same for the Reserva Malbec just a little over $10.... excellent values indeed. Norton is another example of a producer that isn't on my list of favorites, but much like Luigi Bosca they do indeed make quality wine that is quite consistent each vintage.

The Privada will cellar very well for at least 10-12 years.

Any recommended Malbecs under $10 US?

I must confess to being "out of my league" when it comes to wines priced at the mentioned range, but I think that you want to be on the look out for the private label stuff that is made in Argentina for various retail/supermarket chains.... Also, may importers/distributors do 10-20L runs of lots of inexpensive Malbec and put them in a nice bottle and push some hard promotions..... also, Kirkland may have something in this range.

Else, go to your local wine merchant and have them look up their database... if you buy by the case, Im sure they will even special order for you...

A quick Google search found the link below, but please check the details as I have no idea how dated the selections and prices may be....
http://www.momtastic.com/food/171449...ines-under-10/

Happy Malbec Hunting !!!! :D ^

The 2011 Norton Reserva at $10.99 mentioned above is very close to that limit and it is quite a decent wine.

I am sure you can make some good finds but, in my experience, most very inexpensive Malbecs are the bulk swill that used to spoil the reputation of the grape.

Cheers,
J.

Amen....

Sadly Costco does not sell wine here in NY. Wine can only be sold in liquor stores.

At that price, one of the best and most widely available would be the Punto Final black label from Renancer.

A couple of other choices would be the Alamos Malbec, or Terrazas Malbec.

Unfortunately, the Norton Reserva that I mentioned a few posts back is now up to $12.69

RBirns, I would 2nd the Alamos Malbec. You might also consider Altos las Hormigas Malbec

new additions to the ArgEnology Portfolio
 

Some new Malbec additions to the ArgEnology Portfolio.....

Diego Rosso Malbec (Mendoza)
Benegas Lynch Malbec - La Encerrada Vineyard (Mendoza)
Walter Bressia Conjuro Malbec Blend (Mendoza)
Tres Catorce Malbec de Garage (Mendoza)
Daniel Pi Imperfecto Malbec (Mendoza)

And some new Pinot Noirs.....

Rutini Antologia XXXIV Pinot Noir (Mendoza)
Diego Rosso Pinot Noir (Mendoza)
Bressia Piel Negra Pinot Noir (Mendoza)
Marcelo Miras Reserva Pinot Noir (Patagonia)

And some new Sparklers........

Bressia Royale Brut Nature (Mendoza)
Miras Nature Blanc de Blancs (Patagonia)
Ruca Malen Brut (Mendoza)

Bump !!!!

Anybody tasted any noteworthy Malbec as of late...??? :D

I just had a very interesting Malbec from Salta bottled under the Hess label, retailing for $17 in Maui, which is one of the more expensive places to buy wine in the U.S. Pretty sure it comes from Colome's vines (or it's sister property Amalaya) - they may even have vinified it in Salta as the same international conglomerate owns both Hess in California and Colome and Amalaya in Salta.

For $17 retail, my guess is that it was most probably an Amalaya brand, all of the stuff from the "full" Colome portfolio are going to be at least in the mid $20ies per bottle (and that is on the "mainland").....

It was bottled under the Hess label, not Amalaya or Colome. I've not seen a Hess-labeled wine that wasn't from California prior to this. I realize that Hess is the multinational corporation that owns all of these labels. It was probably either re-labeled Amalaya production for the U.S, or excess production from Colome estate. I don't know which one, and I don't suppose that it even matters, as they can certainly blend and label and distribute the wines from any of their estates as they see fit (so long as they are in compliance with the laws of the country that the wine is sold in), and the only appellation on the label was that the wine was from Hess' owned vineyards in Salta.

On a related note, I just had a nice and well priced ($12.95 US) Bordeaux blend (all 5 traditional red Bordeaux grapes: 43% CS, 20% PV, 16% Merlot, 16% Malbec, 5% CF) from the 2009 vintage from the label Glen Carlou, which is an estate under the Hess portfolio located in the Paarl region of South Africa. It was interesting in that blends of all 5 Bordeaux grapes, especially with significant amount of Petit Verdot, are not common in the U.S. at this sort of price point.

Yes, you are correct.... wineries have many ways of "dumping" excess juice and your example if one way they do it... others just sell the juice to Costco for their Kirkland labels... :p

Argentina makes a good number of the 5 Grape blend you describe above, some of the higher end versions are quite extraordinary, and are still priced well below their US and European equivalents. In blind tastings I conduct, the results are quite remarkable, especially when you look at the "league table" and what each bottle costs.... ^

I just had the last (at home) bottle of Luca Malbec, which was perfect timing, because the local Costco just got more in stock. And now, I have more at home.

Yum

Some new additions to the ArgEnology Malbec Portfolio..............

Castore Malbec - La Rioja
Aniello Soil Malbec - Patagonia
Bressia MonteAgrelo Malbec - Mendoza

There are several companies that make a business out of buying pretty high quality excess wine and bottling it at prices that are extremely low for the appellation. In addition to Costco's Kirkland brand, some of the major players in this business are Trader Joe's, and the negociant firm of Cameron Hughes.

Miras Jovem Malbec, Patagonia
Vinia Alicia Malbec La Consulta, Mendoza
Vinia Alicia Brote Negro Malbec, Mendoza

Antologia XXXVIII Malbec Blend, Mendoza
Bressia Ultima Hoja Malbec Blend, Mendoza