Today’s Story: Anko
Anko (which means “high water” in the native Indian language of Salta, Argentina) is a small winery founded in 2008 by Fernando Saavedra Jr. and his father in mountainous northwestern Argentina. Along with Anko’s winemaker Alejandro (Colo) Sejanovich, Fernando strives to create terroir-driven Malbecs that display the unique growing conditions of Salta, a “high altitude oasis” amongst the rugged, mountainous deserts of the region. Anko’s winery and vineyards sit at an average elevation of 5,700 feet above sea level in Estancia Los Cardones, named for the cacti that grow there, and the thick-skinned fruit experiences extreme sunlight and creates powerful, concentrated, and structured wines.
Today’s Wine: 2017 Malbec
100% Malbec; 13.5% ABV
The 2017 Malbec is deep purple in color and almost fully opaque. This needs about 30 minutes to truly open up but once it does the nose showcases aromas of plum, blackberry, black cherry, tomato, sweet tobacco, baking spice, pepper, and oak. On the palate, this Malbec displays notes of juicy red plum, blueberry, maraschino cherry, rose petal, mint, ground green cooking herbs, cocoa, and vanilla. The wine is medium- to full-bodied with moderate acidity, medium fine-grained tannins, and a medium length finish.
Price: $20. This was named Wine Spectator’s #1 Top Value Wine and #1 Top Value Malbec last year, and I can certainly see why. While I don’t drink a lot of Malbec, this is very enjoyable and would pair incredibly well with herb-roasted pork, a buffalo burger garnished with blue cheese, or mushroom-stuffed roasted peppers.
JB's Wine Talk 