La Madrugada cabernet franc 2021

La Madrugada is the brainchild of four friends: Bob, Johan, Olivier, and Tom, who started their project in 2017 in the high-altitude Uco Valley in Argentina. A micro-project where they fulfill their dream: making their own wine.

Intensely cherry-red colored wine with thick tears. On the nose, this red wine displays remarkable complexity and finesse with aromas of red and black fruits, candied cranberries, ripe blueberries and blackberries, cherries, and candied sweet pepper. On the palate, it shows great finesse: the wine is robust with high tannins, finely balanced by strikingly elegant acidity. The slightly higher alcohol ultimately results in a powerful, full-bodied red wine with intensity, complexity, and a long finish. This wine is an example of the grandeur that cabernet franc can achieve as a single-varietal wine. Distinguished power, finely structured, and elegant.

Thanks to its combination of higher acidity, tannins, and alcohol, this red wine can age well in the cellar; consume within 12 years. Serve at 16°C in an elegant tulip-shaped glass, and decanting in its youth is a must!

Pair with lacquered Steenvoorde pigeon with sweet spices, grilled kale, and chard.

Estate: La Madrugada
Grape: cabernet franc
Country: Argentina
Region: Los Chacayes, Uco Valley, Mendoza – 1058 MASL
Soil: alluvial, sand, loam
Aging: 19 months in ½ new and ½ used French oak
Alcohol: 13.8%
Bottles produced: 468
Wine style: powerful red
Serving temperature: 16°C – decanting is a must in youth
Food pairing: lacquered Steenvoorde pigeon with sweet spices, dry-aged roasted beef, hare
Cellar potential: drink within 12 years
Volume: 75 cl