Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino 2004

A historic and monumental vintage, the 2004 Malbec Argentino represents the debut of this flagship label, crafted from the Adrianna and Nicasia vineyards' most prestigious old-vine parcels. This wine exhibits a saturated, deep violet color and an extraordinarily complex nose of ripe cassis, mocha, and cloves, layered with earthy notes of wood smoke and forest floor. On the palate, it is full-bodied and profoundly concentrated, offering a seamless balance of sweet black cherry and blueberry fruit against savory undertones of tobacco, dark chocolate, and cracked black pepper. With velvety, well-integrated tannins and a vibrant high-altitude acidity, it concludes with a remarkably long, mineral-driven finish. This vintage is a benchmark of Argentinian winemaking, showing incredible structural integrity and aging potential.

98 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The single-vineyard 2004 Malbec “Argentino Vineyard” spent 17 months in new French oak. Remarkably fragrant and complex aromatically, it offers up aromas of wood smoke, creosote, pepper, clove, black cherry, and blackberry. Made in a similar, elegant style, it is the most structured of the three single vineyard wines, needing a minimum of a decade of additional cellaring. It should easily prove to be a 25-40 year wine. It is an exceptional achievement in Malbec.

95 Points - James Suckling

This is still demure and deep despite the fruit ripeness. Cedary wood with savory plums, berries, dry earth and truffles. Still pretty full-bodied with rich, savory fruit and aged complexity. Lots of tannins here but they have started to mellow. It lingers well. This is still developing, but it is arguably getting close to its peak. Lots of complexity here. Drink or hold. Plenty of life still ahead of it.

95 Points - Wine Spectator

Ultramodern in style, this is massively endowed with dense layers of raspberry ganache, boysenberry and plum sauce allied to a massive core of dark chocolate, licorice and loam. Yet this manages to stay deftly balanced, with a long, pure finish driven by dark fruit and graphite. Drink now through 2011.

94 Points - Wine Enthusiast