Kaiken Estate Malbec

For Kaiken, the grapes are gently fermented, and the young wine is aged for eight months in barrels made of half American oak. Then, only lightly filtered to preserve its original flavor, it is bottled. Kaiken, Montes' latest project, however, comes from Argentina. Montes vinifies the Kaiken wines in a leased winery using grapes purchased from various vineyards in the Tupungato region of Mendoza. All suppliers were carefully selected, and Montes oversees every stage of the winemaking process. Once the areas that produce the best grapes have been identified, Montes may purchase his own vineyards in Argentina and build a winery. Color: deep, dark violet. Aroma: opulent bouquet of blueberries, blackcurrants, and delicate notes of dark chocolate, tobacco, and coffee. Taste: juicy, very complex, and excellently structured. On the palate, too, the full fruit dominates, supported by ripe tannins that accompany a dreamlike, endlessly long finish. James Suckling 90 points. The Mapuche Indians call the Patagonian wild goose, which crosses the Andes Mountains sometimes into Chile, sometimes into Argentina, "Kaiken." And because Montes also crossed the Andes into neighboring Argentina in 2019 to produce his select wines, he named them after the geese: Kaiken.