The Pulenta family has been involved in the Argentine winemaking scene for 3 generations. Considering the tumultuous history of Argentina, this is very impressive. Antonio Pulenta, a descendent of Italian immigrants, started out as a winegrower in Argentina, and his two sons founded Bodega Pulenta in 2002.

The winery makes three tiers of wine, with La Flor being their entry level offerings, showing off the potential of their younger vines, and producing wines that are meant to be enjoyed in the short term. These wines are by no means simple, or made just from excess grapes. It seems to me that as much though and care goes into these younger vines and the wines that they produce, as their Estate, and top tier bottlings.

This very impressive wine is rated 90 Points by the Wine Advocate with the following review: "Pulenta Estate’s 2010 La Flor Malbec (100%) spent 6 months in French oak. It offers up an inviting nose of cedar, spice box, lavender, earthy minerals, and black cherry. This sets the stage for a savory, ripe, layered offering that over-delivers in a big way. Drink this outstanding value over the next 3-4 years."

From a wine drinker's standpoint, you should notice that this wine spent 6 months in French oak barrels. Many other Malbecs in this price range are fermented only in tank. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it does cause Malbec to become more simplistic than another Malbec that has spent time in barrels, especially French oak barrels, which impart a very balanced flavor to the wine.

Enjoy this new addition to our Malbec lineup, and I hope that you enjoy it as much as we did.

Cheers!

Tracy Maxon

tracy@varmax.com

P.S. - I am still on vacation and away from my desk. I will get to your emails as soon as I am able, but please place all orders over the phone or through our website. Thank you.