2021 Kaiken Ultra Malbec
Type of Wine | Red |
---|---|
Country | |
Region | Mendoza |
Appellation | Mendoza (Appellation) |
Winery | |
Vintage | 2021 |
Grape | |
Content (Alc) | 0.75 ltr (14.5%) |
Drink window | 2024 - 2028 |
Description
The grapes used to make Kaiken Ultra Malbec come from vineyards in the Uco Valley, where the great variations in altitude and soil and varied characteristics allow the grapes to be translated into distinctive and complex wines. The grapes are harvested from three different vineyards, each with unique characteristics. The vineyards are located at different altitudes: Los Chacayes and Gualtallary at 1,300 meters above sea level and Altamira at 1,100 meters. Despite the differences in altitude and surface area, all vineyards have alluvial soils of the same type characteristics.
The grapes used in the Ultra Malbec were harvested by hand in April and transported in 17 kg trays to prevent the grapes from being damaged and to ensure that the quality of the fruit remained intact. The grapes are then manually selected in the winery, removing any elements that could be detrimental to the final quality. Fermentation and maceration for one month. 100% wine was transferred to French oak barrels - a third of the wine went to new barrels and the rest into second and third use barrels. This helps the fruity character of the wine. Aging in barrels for 12 months and the wine was slightly filtered with cartridges before bottling.
This deep, brilliant red-colored wine with purplish notes exhibits rich aromas. The nose has interesting, spicy and floral notes - a clear expression of the Uco Valley - interwoven with black fruit aromas reminiscent of blueberries and blackberries that show the great typicity of this variety. Good structure and soft tannins demand a second glass. The finish is fresh, complex and with fruit notes and subtle spicy undertones of rosemary, thyme and dry flowers.
Kaiken Winery
The Caiquén is a wild goose from Patagonia that flies over the Andes between Argentina and Chile. Taking on this cross-border flight poses a major challenge for the Caiquén. Like the Caiquén, Aurelio Montes, founder of the Chilean winery Bodega Montes, made several trips through the Andes until he rediscovered Mendoza in 2000 as a generous land full of beautiful vineyards and hardworking people. In 2001, he realized that Mendoza was the perfect place to make Kaikén wines, wines that embody everything a great wine should be.
Read more under the heading winery.
Specifications
Type of Wine | Red |
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Country | Argentina |
Region | Mendoza |
Appellation | Mendoza (Appellation) |
Winery | Kaiken |
Grape | Malbec |
Biological certified | No |
Natural wine | No |
Vegan | No |
Vintage | 2021 |
Drinking as of | 2024 |
Drinking till | 2028 |
Alcohol % | 14.5 |
Alcohol free/low | No |
Content | 0.75 ltr |
Oak aging | Yes |
Sparkling | No |
Dessert wine | No |
Closure | Cork |
Promotion | Tier Price |
Tasting Profiles | Dry, Aged on wood, Powerful, Red fruit, Tannines, Full |
Drink moments | Barbecue, Cadeau!, Lekker luxe, Met vrienden, Open haard, Romantisch |
Wijnhuis
Kaiken is the Argentinian branch of the Chilean wine company Montes. They mainly make red wine where the Malbecs are powerful, but more sophisticated than most Malbecs from Argentina. Kaiken now belongs to the top of Argentina (and actually South America) with Catena Zapata. The wines excel in elegance and unlike many South American wines, the style is much more Old World.
Argentinian Kaiken was founded in 2002 by the Chilean wine producer Aurelio Montes. They have three vineyards in Mendoza and one in Salta (before the Torrontès). The three vineyards in Mendoza vary in height from 950 to 1250 meters. There are vineyards in pergola form, with wire guidance and as a gobelet (free-standing shrub). There are minor differences in the soils, but the base is in all cases an alluvial soil due to erosion of the Andes. Some of the vineyards are cultivated biodynamically. The wines are made in Vistalba in a beautiful classic building from 1920 that was bought in 2007. The company in Argentina is managed by Aurelio Montes jr, who is also the chief winemaker. 'Kaiken' is the Mapuche Indian word for a Patagonian wild goose, which regularly travels over the Andes mountains, so as Montes crossed from Chile to Argentina.