SonVida Malbec 2014 is made from 95% Malbec and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon

The most challenging of years yielded a great harvest, and a magnificent wine.  Frost in September, just as our Malbec was in budbreak.  Then a fierce Zonda wind in early November, just as the vineyard was flowering.  The result?  Yields low, BUT quality high.

SonVida Malbec 2013 celebrates intense fruit, plum, blackberry, even dark chocolate notes, with the optimal acidity and smooth tannins that are so typical of the award-winning Altamira district in the Uco Valley of Mendoza.  Above all, this latest Malbec from the Alegira vineyard boasts rare balance - a hint of the Old World in the best of the New World.

Review:

Decanter World Wine Awards 2017, 90 pts

SonVida Malbec is made from 95% Malbec and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon

SonVida Malbec is a single vineyard wine, the supreme expression of the award-winning zone of Altamira, in Argentina's Uco Valley. Altamira's smooth tannins shine through, and the combination of acidity and minerality lead the wine to a long, integrated finish.

"The wine is proud to be ripe and generous. Aromas dominated by smokey mulberry and blueberry. It's plush and coats the palate with bramble, blueberry and liquorice and the scent of vanilla. Immediately muscular and broad-shouldered in the glass, with a savory note, perhaps tapenade, running through the dense palate with mint and dried herbs on the finish. The oak will integrate over time, mixing its spice with the warm spice of fruit. - Joe Fattorini - The Wine Show"

Sunny Summer with moderate nighttime temperatures, followed by an early Fall.
Grapes come from the Mendoza region, in the Paraje Altamira area.

YIELD: 35 Hl/HA
MACERATION: Total 25 days, first cold-soaked 5 days, 14 days fermentation at 24° C, plus 7 additional days. No filtration.

SonVida Malbec can be enjoyed on its own, and matches perfectly with meats, chicken, turkey and hard cheeses. It is enjoyed best in good company. ‘Would you like another glass?’ The answer, almost always, is ‘yes’.

Review:

"Former diplomat and journalist David Smith doesn’t make much wine, alas, but the quality is extremely good indeed. Subtle, refreshing and marked by the chalky terroir of Paraje Altamira, it’s a nuanced, skilfully oaked Malbec with precision, focus and impressive palate length. 2020-25"
- Tim Atkin, Argentina Special Report 2018), 93 pts

"A gorgeously rustic, complex wine packed with blossom, dark fruits and Christmas spices. Rich and satisfyingly rounded with soft tannins."- Decanter World Wine Awards 2018, 93 pts - SILVER MEDAL

"The 2015 Malbec has an old-world style in its balance, elegance and smoothness but with the chalky texture of the Altamira soils. It's very harmonious and young, as classic as it gets, medium-bodied and very drinkable. It has developed some extra complexity in the bottle and comes through as complex and layered. Terrific right now. 4,800 bottles were filled in 2017. - Luis Gutiérrez" - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue #245, October 2019), 92 pts

SALE!

60% Malbec, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Syrah.
We named our vineyard in the Andes of Argentina after our daughter Alegría. When we first saw the land, she was a baby in our arms. Now, as she goes to college, this wine celebrates her journey.

From a single vineyards, 1,029 meters (3,000 feet) above sea level near Paraje Altamira, Mendoza.
Age of the vines is 13 years (planted in 2002).
Aged 15 months in French and American Oak Barrel

Red meat, pork, grilled chicken.

Review:

93 PTS - Silver Medal - Decanter World Wine Awards

Bressia Conjuro 50% Malbec, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 20% Merlot

Aged in 70% French oak (Taransaud, Mistral, and Radoux), and 30% American oak.

This wine is a blend of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot from the Tupungato Valley, Mendoza, at 1,100 meters above sea level.
Its elegant, expressive aromas prepare us to drink a full-bodied, broad wine, very elegant and with a long, unctuous finish that leaves us with a seductive, pleasurable sensation. This wine comes from high quality grapes grown in the Uco Valley and was aged for 18 months in new French and American oak barrels, then in bottle for 24 months

"The pricey 2013 Conjuro is an impressive blend of 50% Malbec, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot that felt lighter and more balanced than in previous years, with sweetness from the tannins and oak-derived flavors and aromas. It has herbal and spice notes from the Cabernet and Merlot and round, juicy tannins after 18 months in new French barriques. I wonder how this blend would be with less new oak... 3,500 bottles were filled in December 2016.- Luis Gutiérrez"

- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue #237, June 2018), 93 pts

"This year, Conjuro is 50% Malbec, grapes from Agrelo and Vista Flores, Bressias’s preferred and primary sources for this variety. Where Cabernet and Merlot are concerned, they went to the higher parts of Gualtallary to get the grip that’s clearly present here. It’s pretty impressive to see how this wine has evolved: from a heavy, very ripe red to where it is today, a red fruit focused blend, best defined as medium to light bodied, but at the same time with enormous length, which is, at the end of the day, what matters. Wines with length more than breadth. and enough acidity to brighten a meal, that’s what it’s all about."
- Descorchados, 94 pts

"(14% alcohol; aged for 18 months in new Taransaud barrels): Healthy red-ruby. Complex, sexy aromas and flavors of black fruits, mocha, brown spices, tobacco leaf, licorice and flowers. Wonderfully broad and savory on entry, then ripe and sweet in the middle palate; not especially fleshy or outsized but intense and aromatic in the mouth. The very long finish features firm but well-integrated tannins and sexy spices. Classic Gualtallary energy here--and the spine to evolve gracefully for another decade. - Stephen Tanzer"

- Antonio Galloni's Vinous (Argentina’s Wines Enter The World Stage, July 2018), 93 pts

Keermont Estate Reserve Red Blend is made from 36% Merlot, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Franc, 10% Malbec, 6% Syrah, 4% Petit Verdot

The Keermont Estate Reserve is the winery's flagship red blend. With this blend they aim to bring to life the nuances of both the terroir at Keermont Vineyards and the particular vintage.

Venetian red in color, this wine exudes complex aromas of ripe cherry, wild berries, and dusty 'fynbos'. The palate has an array of ripe berries, cherry sherbet, crushed herbs and spices. Elegant but firm tannin affords the wine a long dry succulent finish.  

All grapes are grown on Keermont Vineyards. Most of the vineyard parcels grow on deep red clay rich soil derived from sandstone and granite and are surrounded by indigenous vegetation. They lie between 250 and 400 meters above sea level in the valley between the Stellenbosch and Helderberg mountain ranges and have a variety of aspects from North East to West facing.

Small batches of grapes are specifically selected according to ripeness, harvested by hand and vinified separately. This process is carried out gently and naturally in open top fermenters using traditional methods only. This wine spent 22 months maturing in French oak barrels (20% new) before being bottled by hand without filtration

Review:

"This 2013 Estate Reserve was previously known as just "Keermont" since the estate wanted to keep the wine before release. A lot of fruit was lost to wind during flowering, ergo there is a little more Cabernet in the blend. The wine spent 22 months maturing in French oak barrels (20% new) before being bottled by hand without filtration on December 22, 2014. It has a precise, detailed bouquet of blackberry, raspberry, cold stone and just a touch of iodine. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp acidity and quite strict tannin, grippy in the mouth, yet very elegant, presenting a lingering, almost Saint-Julien-like finish. Give this another year in bottle and you will have a very fine wine in your possession. - Neal Martin"

- Vinous (August 29th 2018), 92 pts

"This is Keermont’s flagship wine, the first wine made under the label in 2007. It sees 2 years in oak and is kept in bottle another 2 years before release. Richly aromatic with spice and fynbos/herbal notes. Fabulous, layered texture of rich, dense dark red fruit seamlessly integrated with toasted oak. A blend of 36% Merlot, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Fanc, 10% Malbec, 6% Syrah and 4% Petit Verdot. 14.5% alc. Alex has been gradually increasing the percent of Cabernet Franc in this wine over time."

- International Wine Review (January 2019), 92 pts

Abeja Chardonnay Washington State 2013 is 100 percent Chardonnay

This Chardonnay has the essence of a freshly baked lemon meringue pie, green apple, and Bartlett pear. It is both dense and bright, with a hint of vanilla and cinnamon coming from its time in barrel. Aromas are so much related to experiences. It is a wine that is in the traditional Abeja style, with superb polish, complexity, and balance, yet with a light touch at 13.5 percent alcohol.

Review:

"Supple, ripe and complex, with layers of pear, floral, tangerine and a note reminiscent of freshly ironed clothing. Fine acidity carries this through to a refreshing finish. Drink now through 2020. 919 cases made. –HS"
- Wine Spectator (November 15th, 2015), 91 pts

"Abeja’s 2013 Chardonnay offers clean, crisp notes of apple blossom, white flowers, citrus and brioche. Fermented and aged in barrel (40% new), it has a solid mix of richness and freshness, is beautifully balanced, and will drink nicely for 2-3 years. - Jeb Dunnuck"

- The Wine Advocate (erobertparker.com, June 2015), 91 pts

"A blend of top sites Celilo and Conner Lee, this appealing wine displays aromas of candy corn, corn silk and chamomile. The stone-fruit flavors are elegantly styled, showing a sense of restraint and balance that carries through the lingering finish."

- Wine Enthusiast (September 1st 2015), 91 pts