Zuccardi, Malbec “Polígonos: Paraje Altamira”

At about 1,100 meters’ altitude, the vineyard sources for today’s wine would rank among the highest-elevation sites in Europe. In Mendoza, Argentina, however, this is effectively the baseline, with many vineyards climbing much higher. Of course, having vineyards at such great heights doesn’t exempt Mendoza from producing dense, oversaturated reds; in fact, one could argue that dense and oversaturated has been the default style for Mendoza Malbec.Today’s wine from Zuccardi is a welcome departure from that style. Young proprietor Sebastián Zuccardi, a third-generation viticultor in Mendoza’s Valle de Uco, created his “Polígonos” line to showcase the unique characteristics of single vineyard sites—a Burgundian approach in a region that has become a second home for some of Bordeaux’s biggest names. Aged only in concrete tanks, the varietal purity and soil character in Zuccardi’s 2016 “Paraje Altamira” is downright paradigm-shifting. There’s no shortage of the dark fruit, purple florals, an