Cuvée 1844 Malbec 2020
AOC Zürich, Roland und Karin Lenz, 750 ml
| Grape variety: | Malbec |
| Producer: | Roland und Karin Lenz |
| Origin: | Switzerland / Ostschweiz / (AOC) Zürich |
Description
From Cahors to Argentina and now in Zurich! Malbec was once exclusively at home in France, then became the emblematic grape variety of Argentina, and today is the newcomer in Zurich. A first taste makes it evident that this grape is feeling completely at home in the company of the Lenz family! The nose reveals suggestions of plum, sour cherry, fir sapling, juniper and damp stone. On the palate there is an aromatic blend of blue and sweet mulberries, spicy roasted aromas and a hint of mint. A Malbec offering juicy acidity and elegant freshness, precise tannins and a clear profile. Bound to give you and your guests endless delight in combination with "Zürcher Geschnetzeltes", duck à l'orange, BBQ or to venison with a sour cherry sauce, along with mashed potatoes and parsnips.
Attributes
| Origin: | Switzerland / Ostschweiz / (AOC) Zürich |
| Grape variety: | Malbec |
| Label: | Vegan, Certified organic or biodynamic wine |
| Ripening potential: | 1 to 8 years after harvest |
| Drinking temperature: | 16 to 18 °C |
| Food Pairing: | Cold fish dish, dried meat, Spiced grillades, Crispy roast chicken, Cheese board |
| Vinification: | long must fermentation, Punching down, soft pressing, saignée |
| Harvest: | hand-picking |
| Maturation: | in large wooden barrel/foudre, short cultivation |
| Bottling: | no filtration |
| Volume: | 13.5 % |
| Note: | Contains sulphites |
Roland und Karin Lenz
In 1994, while Roland Lenz was still studying oenology, he and his wife Karin were able to acquire eight hectares of vines on the Iselisberg. It was a unique opportunity that they seized, even though they were toying with the idea of setting up their own business abroad, far from Switzerland. They actually did so later, but that's another story…
It is only in the last two decades that the Canton of Thurgau has really come to the attention of wine lovers as a wine-growing area. Its apple orchards and the apple juice (must) pressed from the picked fruit have always been popular, inevitably earning the canton its nickname of «Must India». Viticulture, however, has existed in this region for centuries.
Malbec
New Home, New Fortune
The Malbec once belonged to the classic assortment of varieties from Bordeaux. But it was demanding to cultivate, and in the changeable climate of the Bordelais it often became green and herbaceous, so winemakers replaced it with Merlot in the middle of the 20th century. Luckily, the Malbec found a new home in Argentina. In 1868, a Frenchman brought the first stocks along to the land of the Andes. Today, the Malbec is the most-planted variety there. Especially in Mendoza, it shows what it can do: it yields very dark, well-structured wines with aromas of black fruit, violets and game. They just call out for an Argentinean steak! The Malbec has its origins in Cahors, in southwestern France. There, it is kept today under the name Cot. Due to their earthy tannins, in the middle ages the growths from this area were also called "the black wines of Cahors".
Ostschweiz
Eastern Switzerland: an intriguing puzzle
Eastern Switzerland has long been positioned on the northern rim of the climate zone where the cultivation of popular Swiss varieties is possible. Due to a warming climate, the vineyards of Aargau, Zurich, Schaffhausen, Thurgau and Graubünden are now in the zone where varieties such as Müller-Thurgau or Pinot Noir succeed excellently. But even long-established, almost-forgotten varieties such as Elbling, Räuschling and Completer are experiencing a renaissance.
Switzerland
Switzerland – A small country with enormous diversity
Switzerland is famous for its banks, watches, and cheese, but not necessarily for its wine. The Swiss didn't invent wine, but they have been extremely open and curious to it. Wine culture arrived in what is now modern Switzerland via several routes: from Marseilles to Lake Geneva and the Lower Valais region; from the Aosta Valley through the Great St. Bernard Pass to the rest of Valais; from the Rhone through Burgundy, across the Jura Mountains to Lake Constance; and from Lombardy to Ticino, and then on to Grisons.
