Lindaflor La Violeta 2014

Uco Valley (Valle de Uco) is a key wine-growing region of Mendoza, Argentina. An hour's drive south of Mendoza, it is home to some of the region's most famous wines.  It attracted the attention of Henri Parent, the owner of Château La Violette, a tiny estate of 1.8 hectares on the Pomerol plateau between Château Trotanoy and Le Pin.  After acquiring the estate formerly known as Bodega Monteviejo in 1999, Henri Parent retained the talented Marcelo Pelleriti as the winemaker and director for his new adventure in Argentina.  To reflect the parentage, the wine was renamed Lindaflor La Violeta.

South American wines, generally, are drunk while young.  What's often lost is the opportunity to see what they can do after long aging.  Recognizing the full aging potential of a 100% Malbec wine, starting with the 2013 vintage, Henri Parent decided to age the wine in the cellars until it optimally displays the true quality of this fabulous Mendoza production.  After eight years of patient aging, for the first time ever, the 2013 vintage of Lindaflor La Violeta was released for sale in September 2022.

Having tasted this wine, we give it two thumbs up and wholeheartedly recommend it to our clients.  The eight years it has had in the cellar just renders it perfectly ready to be enjoyed.  Yet, it will easily age another 20-plus years to showcase what a true 100% Malbec wine can deliver.

"Sweet liqourice, chalk, blackberry pie, damson, espresso, touch of reduction keeps things subdued for a moment, followed by an explosion of flavours, this is great quality, and distinctive with orange peel lift and acidity on the finish. Winemaker Marcelo Pelleriti makes the wines across Henri Parent's estates in Pomerol and Argentina. 100% hand destemmed, old vines from a high altitude site at 1,200m in the Uco Valley. Held back at the estate until ready to drink making this its first release, second year of sale through the Place de Bordeaux. Heavy bottle." - Jane Anson (7/3/2023) Rating: 95, Drink: 2026-2040 

"The oldest of the two vintages I tasted of the top wine, the 2014 La Violeta reached 15.5% alcohol, less than the previous wine I tasted and more than the following vintage, 2017, that I tasted next to this. This comes from stony soils with limestone, and the grapes from hand-destemmed grapes fermented in French oak barrels that are rotated with a manual pigeage. It matured in (40%) new barriques for two to three years and then was let to rest for five years in bottle before being released. Marcelo Pelleriti told me the changes started with this vintage when he used 7% Cabernet Franc, and they used only 40% new barrels (in the past it was 100% new oak) and also a gentler vinification to extract less. These wines are not going to be released until their 10th birthday, and they should be long lived and develop in bottle. But they will always remain generously oaked, textured, powerful and full-bodied. 8,800 bottles were filled in November 2016.

Monteviejo, like many, is converting their farming to obtain an organic certification of their vineyards in Vista Flores in the Valle de Uco. The wines are under the charge of winemaker Marcelo Pelleriti. They have 147 hectares of vineyards, so it's a lot of work." - Luis Gutiérrez, The Wine Advocate (11/30/2022), Rating: 94, Drink: 2025-2037