Belasco de Baquedano, AR Guentota, Old Vine Malbec

The unique parcels of ancient Malbec vines, planted over 100 years ago from original French clones, are perched over 3300 feet above sea level at the base of the Andes’ Aconcagua peaks, which are the highest in the Americas. Mendoza’s Luján de Cuyo department produces some of the best wines in Argentina. The most sought-after sub-district of Luján de Cuyo is the Alto Agrelo Valley where these 105-year-old vines are rooted in fine-grained sand, silt and clay soils, and are blessed with warm days and cool nights that drop down to 45 degrees. This crucial diurnal shift between day and nighttime temperatures allows for full phenolic ripeness while maintaining fresh acidity, fundamentals to any world-class wine. The locale of this impressive site not only delivers snow melt from the Andes, providing a pure water source for the fruit, it aesthetically delivers a majestic view of trained vines that dramatically sweep across a background of the grand snow-capped Andes. Luján de Cuyo was the fi