2006 Cheval des Andes

(malbec and cabernet sauvignon with a bit of petit verdot) Bright medium ruby. Initially restrained aromas of currant, black cherry and chocolatey oak accented by pepper and herbs. Suave and claret-like, with mounting energy and inner-mouth floral character to the delineated flavors of currant, tobacco leaf, graphite and pepper. Intensely flavored but understated and backward wine, with strong but well integrated acidity. Finishes firmly tannic, refined and long, with a chocolatey sweetness and stronger minerality emerging with extended aeration. This laid-back wine, a joint venture between Cheval Blanc and Terrazas de los Andes, needs at least a few years of cellaring. (An earlier bottle began a bit less floral and more youthfully tough but became markedly sweeter and more pliant with 24 hours in the recorked bottle.)

The 2006 Cheval des Andes was bottled in early 2008 but has not yet been released. The 2006 vintage is superb throughout Mendoza and this wine, as in many other bodegas I visited in April 2008, shows off the extra dimension of complexity made possible in an exceptional year. The wine is composed entirely of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. It is a bit more saturated than the 2005 with a splendid perfume of pain grille, mineral, espresso, black cherry, and black raspberry that leaps from the glass. More opulent and layered than the 2005, it also conceals a bit more structure. The finish seems to go on and on. Drink it from 2015 to 2035. (Not yet released) Cheval des Andes is owned by the legendary Saint-Emilion producer, Chateau Cheval Blanc. The wine is sourced from their 50 hectare estate vineyard planted on its own roots in 1929. The first vintage was 1999 and over time the wine has evolved into having a majority of Malbec in the blend. New oak is used for the Cabernet component and one-year-old barrels for the Malbec. Altogether the wine spends 18 months in cask. Importer: Moet-Hennessey USA; www.mhusa.com