2022 Altos Las Hormigas, Mendoza Tinto - Liberty

Friends and business partners Alberto Antonini and Antonio Morescalchi first visited Mendoza in 1995 and were instantly impressed by the vineyards they discovered. Nearly three decades later, the estate they founded, Altos Las Hormigas, has gone from being a youthful dream to one of the country’s leading producers.

Alberto and Antonio work very closely with Pedro Parra (widely regarded as the world’s leading expert on soil and vineyard mapping) to identify the best vineyard sites to grow their grapes. As a result, they have discovered outstanding sites across Mendoza and aim to show the distinct character of each through their wines. From Luján de Cuyo they obtain fine tannins, concentration and a dark purple colour, whereas the calcareous, high-elevation sites of Vistaflores, Altamira and Gualtallary each bring distinctive perfumes and mouth-filling textures.

In 2020, Federico Gambetta was appointed winemaker and by 2021, he was producing 100-point wines, propelling this highly respected winery into a new era. A combination of biodynamic farming, minimal intervention in the winery, as well as Alberto and Antonio’s relentless experimentation and desire to produce Argentina's best wines, has given Altos its reputation as one of the country’s leading Malbec specialists.

The ‘Colonia Las Liebres’ Bonarda Clasica is certified organic and offers a juicy red with soft tannins. The Mendoza Tinto, a blend of Bonarda, Malbec and a small amount of Semillon, is their interpretation of the classic Mendoza red blend which existed before winemakers started focusing on single varieties. The Blanco is a new addition to the range, and is a blend of Chenin Blanc, Pedro Giménez and Semillon, grown in the Uco Valley on deep, lime soils. The certified organic Malbec Clásico offers a fresh, fruity yet elegant expression made primarily from grapes grown at the Luján de Cuyo estate, on silty soils. Also sourced from Luján de Cuyo, the ‘Terroir’ is sourced from an organic vineyard with limestone soils and shows a different expression of Malbec from the traditional Luján region, where predominantly alluvial and clay soils tend to produce wines with more weight and structure.

Their other wines are made exclusively from fruit sourced from select sites in the Uco Valley. The ‘Terroir’ Uco Valley Malbec perfectly combines Uco Valley florals with stunning purity of fruit. The Malbec Reserve offers more depth and complexity, as it is sourced from distinguished calcareous terraces, with 75% of the wine aged for 18 months in 3,500 litres untoasted French oak foudres, and 25% aged in concrete tanks, before a further 12 months ageing in bottle.

Altos Las Hormigas also produce two single-vineyard Malbecs from the renowned Uco Valley appellations of Altamira and Gualtallary. The Altamira vineyard is planted at 1,200 metres above sea level and the Gualtallary vineyard at 1,300 metres above sea level. The ‘Appellation Altamira’ Malbec is more elegant and aromatic, whereas the ‘Appellation Gualtallary’ Malbec is rounder and more powerful with great concentration, perfectly highlighting the Uco Valley’s site diversity.

Also located in Altamira, the `Jardín de Hormigas` vineyard is certified organic with 40% of its 32 hectares planted with native flora, ensuring biodiversity corridors grow among the vines. This vineyard is separated into 22 plots which were mapped and analysed by Pedro Parra when the vineyard was planted in 2017. Each plot (on average less than 1.5 hectares in size) is farmed and harvested individually, producing incredible wines with unique personalities across 23 different soil types. `Meteora` is a wine sourced from four plots within the ‘Jardín de Hormigas’ vineyard. Made from 100% Malbec, it is vinified in concrete tanks with 15% whole cluster, before ageing in concrete for 12 months. Originally intended to offer a more straightforward style of Malbec from this vineyard, the final wine is quite the opposite, offering a unique, diverse and complex expression, with Tim Atkin awarding the wine 95 points in his 2024 Argentina Special Report. Also sourced from `Jardín de Hormigas`, `Los Amantes` is produced from 100% Malbec grapes grown in a 1.2-hectare single plot in the southern part of the vineyard. Vinified in the same way as `Meteora`, the resulting wine is then aged in untoasted 3,500-litre French oak foudres for 15 months before a second ageing of 12 months in bottle. Awarded 98 points by Tim Atkin for the 2022 vintage, this wine is elegant and aromatic, with a delicate freshness from the silt-rich topsoil.

This wine is a blend of the three traditional Mendoza grapes, widely planted and blended before varietally labelled wines came into fashion. While Malbec and Bonarda continue to be the two most planted varieties in Mendoza, Semillon has fallen out of favour, with only 728 hectares left in 2017. In spite of this, winemaker Alberto Antonini believes Semillon is the most suitable white varietal for Mendoza, as it retains its natural acidity in the dry, sunny climate. Grapes for this wine come mainly from vineyards in Luján de Cuyo, with a small percentage coming from Medrano. The region has a semi-desert climate with hot days and cool nights. Soils in Luján de Cuyo have good water drainage and a fine silt-sandy texture. In soils such as these, vines put down deep roots, helping them resist heat waves, which are common during the summer in Mendoza.

The 2022 growing season was marked by strong heatwaves. Hard work in the vineyard allowed for the grapes to obtain only the desired level of alcohol and acidity before the heatwaves, to preserve the character of the fruit. The season also saw heavy rains which threatened to delay harvest. However, the rains paused and created a perfect window to harvest the fruit at optimal ripeness. In fact, the cool rain just before harvest gave the grapes the necessary time to develop balance and finish ripening.

The grapes were harvested by hand and a careful, double sorting process took place before fermentation. The Malbec and Semillon grapes were co-fermented, while the Bonarda was vinified separately before the final blend. Fermentation was carried out in separate stainless-steel tanks at a temperature between 24-26°C for 10 days. Only indigenous yeasts were used. Each tank was tasted twice a day to determine what was needed. The wine was then aged for nine months in concrete vats to add roundness to the blend. No oak was used.

This wine has an alluring bright ruby colour. On the nose, ripe red fruit stands out. Raspberry and cherry notes are complemented by herbal hints of eucalyptus and menthol alongside pink pepper and chamomile. On the palate, this wine has a balanced acidity, and a long spicy finish.