François Lurton L’Esprit de Chacayes 2021

L’Esprit de Chacayes is 100% malbec, but in reality, it’s a blend of 70% massal selections of Argentine malbec, accustomed to the local terroir for more than 100 years, and 30% cot, the clonal French malbec that Piedra Negra planted around the year 2000, a couple of years later than its Argentine ‘cousin.’ The wine has no added sulfites – an additive that not only preserves the grapes but that’s also a solvent, an extraction agent used in places with tremendous tannins such as Los Chacayes. The absence of exogenous sulfites has given this malbec some peace – although that peace is relative. This is an intense red wine with deep flavors and firm, sharp tannins. Leave this wine in the cellar and forget about it for five years. Score – 96. (Patricio Tapia, guiadescorchados.cl, 2021)