Wine
7 Reasons Why We Love Malbec
Every year on the 17th of April, wine lovers around the world raise their glass to celebrate one of the world’s most under-appreciated varietals – Malbec. Big, juicy and plush, Malbec has a long and layered history, but has largely been overshadowed by its regional cousins Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Grenache.
Neglected for decades in France as a lesser blending grape, Malbec was resurrected and championed in Argentina as an excellent single varietal wine. It's now having a similar resurgence in Australia, with some excellent Australian Malbec wines appearing in the Clare Valley, Langhorne Creek, Margaret River and Great Southern.
With more winemakers now aware of how best to bring out its unique characters, Malbec is finding its way into broader popular acceptance. Here at Wine Selectors, we can’t get enough of the big, heroic wines it can produce, so we’ve compiled seven reasons why Malbec wine is very worthy of your attention.
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1) MALBEC IS A GREAT ALTERNATIVE TO SHIRAZ
When it comes to Malbec vs Shiraz, Malbec is similar in weight to Shiraz. It delivers a big, juicy and plush flavour with a robust structure and moderately firm tannins, with distinctive dark purple colours and notes of red plum, blueberry and an essence of sweet tobacco. Rebecca Willson, winemaker at Bremerton Family Wines, describes Malbec wine as “berry-driven and plush, offering an alternative to Shiraz as our biggest consumed red varietal."
2) MALBEC MAKES A GREAT BLENDED WINE
An excellent blending grape and a powerhouse, Malbec features bold, plush flavours and a richness that drinkers of full-bodied reds love. It is often used by winemakers as a blending tool to add vibrancy and flesh to Cabernet and Shiraz blends, and in the process makes some staggeringly good wines. Did you know that in France, Malbec remains one of the six grapes allowed in red Bordeaux blends? There are significant plantings still present in the Côtes-de-Bourg, Blaye and Entre-Deux-Mers regions, and although the variety very much remains part of French winemaking, there’s no doubt that Malbec wine is enjoying a second life as a New World wine to be reckoned with.
3) MALBEC IS A DRY RED WINE
Is Malbec a dry red wine? Yes. Malbec is a full-bodied red wine has a similar weight and characteristics to Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon or Petit Verdot. It delivers big, juicy and plush flavours with a robust structure and moderately firm tannins. It has distinctive dark purple colour and notes of red plum, blueberry, vanilla, cocoa and an essence of sweet tobacco.
Forest Hill Wines chief winemaker, Liam Carmody, is rather fond of the "intense purple colour and fruit brightness" of their Malbec and notes that it has a "generally softer tannin structure than some other red grape varieties.” For Bremerton's Rebecca Willson it's the "violet, currant purple fruits with velvety tannins, plushness and purity" of the variety.
4) MALBEC PAIRS WELL WITH STEAK, CHARCUTERIE AND CHEESE
The bold flavours, robust structure and higher tannins of Malbec call for dishes with a bold flavour to match such as hard cheese, steak or even sausage such as this chickpea and chorizo hotpot recipe by Miguel Maestre. Our Argentinian beef steak with chimichurri sauce recipe is also a great way to round out an Argentinian themed dinner. Or for a vegetarian option, our spinach and cheese empanadas recipe matches well to a plush Malbec from Great Southern.
Bremerton’s Rebecca Willson prefers "charcoal barbecue of a great cut from your local butcher or pulled pork sliders" with her Malbec. For Forest Hill Wines' Liam Carmody, Australian Malbec means just one dish: "a rare steak sandwich!"
5) ARGENTINIAN MALBEC IS THE REASON WE CELEBRATE WORLD MALBEC DAY
World Malbec Day – or as it’s more properly called, Malbec World Day; from the Spanish Dia Mundial del Malbec, meaning ‘Malbec throughout the world’. The day honours former Argentine President Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, who made it his mission to transform his country’s wine industry by convincing French soil expert Michel Aimé Pouget to travel there with a selection of new vines – chief among them being Malbec. First celebrated in 2011, the day has been central in helping bring attention to the qualities of Malbec, and elevating Argentina’s status as one of the great wine-producing countries of the world. Today, roughly 75% of the world’s Malbec comes out of Argentina.
6) MALBEC THRIVES IN HIGH ALTITUDES
Like many varieties, higher altitudes bring out a whole other dimension in Malbec, imparting an elegance and refinement that have impressed wine show judges around the world. This is especially true of Argentinian Malbec grown in the wine regions of Mendoza, in the foothills of the Andes. Such Malbecs have become that country’s most highly rated and sought-after wines.
Local Australian winemakers have similarly discovered Malbec’s appreciation for the high life. “Just like in Argentina, the real lesson has been that the wine produced at higher altitudes of 800m to 1000m has really shone,” says Mark Davidson of Tamburlaine Wines. As such, cool climate regions like Canberra District and Orange have shown great promise for the production of award-winning Malbec.
7) AUSTRALIAN MALBEC IS AMONG THE BEST IN THE WORLD
Australia has been growing Malbec since at least the 1890s, and while it can be a difficult grape to grow due its vulnerability to frost and mildew, modern viticulture and improved strains have mitigated many of these challenges. In fact, it’s positively thriving in moderate climate regions like Clare Valley, Margaret River and Great Southern, but if there is one region that could lay claim to being Australia’s spiritual home of Malbec though, it would be Langhorne Creek. One the first varieties planted by Bleasdale founder Frank Potts in the region’s earliest days, six generations later it continues to be a signature wine for this iconic producer.
So, there you have it, seven of the many delicious reasons we love Malbec and why you should add it to your wine repertoire too. Cheers to many more World Malbec Day celebrations!