2013 Colome Estate Malbec Salta 750 ml

Rattling Tailbones at 10,000 Feet

The first time we tasted Colomé Malbec was with a tasting group comprised of some of our favorite sommeliers in Manhattan. As always, the wines were served blind, linen draped over each label. The theme was Left Bank Bordeaux. While none of the big boys were present (sommelier budgets don’t allow for Lafite, Latour, and Mouton), the lineup was strong. When the bottles were disrobed, Lynch-Bages, not surprisingly, came out on top. Sociando-Mallet finished just behind. A stunning 2013 Château Poitevin finished #3.

But when the most surprising bottle of the evening was disrobed — the 93-pointer that finished #4 out of 12 — all of us were scratching our heads. None of us identified it as an outlier, one grown 5,000 miles away in the high desert of the Southern Hemisphere. It would only be after we made the trip to Argentina’s Salta, then took the tailbone-rattling 5-hour SUV ride to the cactus-strewn landscape of Colomé, that we came to understand why this exquisite 2013 Malbec outpointed most of the Left Bank competition.

There are two ways to get to Colomé. If you’re on a budget — as we were — you catch the early morning SUV shuttle. If you’re a jet-setter, you can sleep in, sip café con leche at the hotel, then head to the helicopter pad. We recommend the latter, unless your travel companion is a chiropractor!

Most who make the trip to Donald Hess’s high-desert oasis come for the 5-star inn and spa. Not us. We came to see what are said to be the oldest vines in the world, improbably planted 10,000 feet in elevation in Salta’s mountain desert.

Bodega Colomé was founded in 1831, purportedly by the Spanish Governor of Salta. In 1854, the governor’s daughter, Ascensión, returned from Bordeaux with a satchel full of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon budwood. After a several-day horse ride, those 6-inch canes were carved into alluvial mountain sand. 160 years later, those that took continued to thrive, accounting for the magical richness and complexity of wine #4.

When Hess purchased Colomé in 2001, the Napa Valley icon recognized the challenges of tending biodynamically farmed vineyards in the high desert where few live. Just as Hess broke ground on this breathtaking boutique hotel, another crew began building a mountain village. The housing came first, then the school and finally, a community center. By the time the project was completed, the Swiss industrialist had lured Salta labor to the high ground.

When you first walk these rows, feel the hot sun and the steady breeze, you’re struck by the shimmering color of the leaves and the remarkable health of these ancient vines. Today, 163  years after the governor’s daughter smuggled in the Bordelais budwood, her vineyard continues to push out a precious crop of thick-skin clusters spiked with high-desert sweetness — buttressed with the fine-tannin backbone that speaks far more of Pauillac than anything Argentine.

The 2013 Colomé is magnificent. Deepest ruby in color, with explosive aromas of blackberry and currant, raspberries, and black cherry, laced with sweet spices and mineral complexity. The attack is rich and sleek, beautifully honed, packed with crushed black fruits, all bracketed by thick-skin, high-ground muscle. Drinking beautifully now, particularly after an hour in a carafe. But don’t be afraid to treat this one like the rest of our Manhattan lineup. A 5-year rest in a cool cellar will work wonders.

We didn’t trek all the way up the back-breaking slopes of Argentina’s high desert just to bring back a good story. James Suckling nailed it, before awarding our #4 wine 93 points: “Gorgeous to drink now but will improve in the next few years.” See for yourself: 100 cases are up for grabs this morning, at just $24.99.