Familia Zuccardi Zuccardi Finca Canal Uco 2019 750ml

What a nose, garnering complexity and depth. A wide spectrum of aromas that range from blackberries and blueberries to graphite, tree bark and wet earth. A medium-to full-bodied red, showing so much fleshy fruit and powerful, chalky tannins. But never imposing nor flattering. Impeccable poise, with a long, tight finish. This is the kind of wine that you can drink now or lay down for two decades. Better from 2025.

The 2019 Malbec Finca Caral Uco hails from Uco Valley and was made in concrete vats. Intense purple in hue. The nose, initially shy, grows increasingly nuanced and intense with time in the glass. It presents notes of cherry, plum, thyme and hints of bay leaf, violet, lavender and other herbs accompanied by an unusual whiff of pink grapefruit. Pristine and elemental in style, this is a textured red in which the fine-grained tannins deliver plenty of chalk, as well as crisp, juicy freshness. More intense and layered than other wines from the house, the formidable fruit flavors are part of a raw, unfiltered expression of the terroir. (Joaquín Hidalgo)

The 2019 Finca Canal Uco comes from the historical part of Altamira only across the street from their Piedra Infinita vineyard, where the soils are slightly deeper and with a little less limestone and the grapes achieve more ripeness and deliver slightly more generous wines. They planted this vineyard 12 years ago — it was previously planted to apple trees. They have subdivided this 50-hectare vineyard into 40 different plots. The soils are heterogeneous, and they don’t use the stonier soil and also avoid the deeper soils; so, they do a selection, ferment with some stems by plot and then do the blend of some 15 different parts of the vineyard. In Sebastian Zuccardi’s words, they deconstruct the vineyard and then build the wines from the block. This has a combination of the characteristics that are juicier and make you salivate and the limestone, trying to take the best from both worlds. It has some flowers and also iron and blood and is medium to full-bodied, with good ripeness and the house style of seriousness, balance and elegance within the natural power and intensity of the place. This also matured exclusively in concrete without epoxy coating, raw concrete. 11,900 bottles were filled in June 2020.

Beautifully aromatic, showing blood orange and perfumed plum aromas that fold over onto the creamy and velvety palate, with a hint of smoke lying beneath the core of lively plum and Rainer cherry. Ends with firming tannins and a hint of verbena and chalky minerality. Drink now through 2032. 500 cases made, 450 cases imported. (Aaron Romano)