This is made from over 100-year-old vineyards and offers blackberries with blue fruit and dark chocolate. Shows bark and black truffle undertones, too. Tight and more focused than in past vintages. The quality of the tannins is more precise and fine. Blackberries and black truffles at the end. Drink or hold.

It feels like there was a big change in the 2019 Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino, a year with a vibrant palate and very clean and focused aromas and flavors. They fine-tuned the irrigation and viticulture, and that seems to have increased the precision of the wine. They also did a selection and left the grapes from the borders of the vineyard, which were affected by the paths and other stuff. It's still a little more voluptuous than the wines from Gualtallary, as this mixes grapes from Angélica (Lunlunta) and Nicasia (Altamira). It's nicely textured and tasty, medium-bodied and with a vibrant finish. 25,200 bottles produced. It was bottled in November 2020. - LG

The 2019 Malbec Argentino is a blend of grapes from venerable vineyards in Lunlunta and Paraje Altamira; it is essentially a premium Mendoza Malbec. A significant amount was fermented in whole bunches before spending 18 months in used French barrels. The complex nose presents notes of plum and blueberry with hints of country herb, jarilla and pennyroyal over a bed of sour cherry and cedar. There is a whiff of lavender perfume. The fine tannins act as a net that shapes rather than structures the volume. It has good energy and elasticity with grip, juicy freshness and a complex layer of fruit appearing at the back of the mouth. The 2019 is an accomplished wine in a year that allowed for nuance and freshness. -- Joaquín Hidalgo

Winemaking Director Alejandro Vigil blends this wine from a mass selection of malbec in Catena’s Nicasia vineyard (planted in 1996 in La Consulta, 3,593 feet above sea level) and Angélica (planted around 1930 in Lunlunta, 3,018 feet above sea level). They destem 80 percent of the bunches before fermenting with ambient yeasts in new French oak barrels, where the wine ages for 18 months before bottling. The oak seems to deepen and lengthen the texture, adding some vanilla flair to the finish. The wine itself is certainly big enough to carry the oak’s dark chocolate flavors, the fruit going towards black raspberry layered with blueberry complexity. Eleven Madison Park sommelier Alex Mares described it as “suave.” Some air points up the freshness of the wine, hinting at years of development ahead in the cellar. If you open it now, give it a vigorous decant next to rare squab and a prune reduction.

This Malbec has a good balance of fruit and herbs with a delicate structure. The nose displays notes of berries and aromatic herbs that repeat on the palate. A smooth texture and lively acidity hold raspberry, blackberry and blueberry flavors with hints of smoke. It has an elegant finish with subtle notes of chocolate. Drink now–2029. - Jesica Vargas

A rich and concentrated version, with a note of molasses to the blackberry, pomegranate and plum, with roasted espresso, peppercorn and savory elements folding in around a firm grip of tannins and a note of dark chocolate. Very complete. Drink now through 2032. — A.R.