EQUINOX | Malbec | 2015
malbec

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Tonight we are going to review another single-varietal malbec wine that has been a true revelation right from day one – Malbec 2015 by Equinox. Known for its plump, dark fruit flavors and smoky finish, malbec wines have been adored for centuries, especially by the royal houses of England and Russia. With elegant notes of plum, tobacco and hints of violets, malbec offers a great alternative to its higher priced siblings: merlot, cabernet sauvignon or syrah. Malbec originates in the famous Cahors region of France, however Argentina proved that there’s more to malbec variety than just value, as it can offer an unmatched complexity and elegance if produced in a new-world style, with a nuanced fruity character. That said, without further, let’s move on, straight to the tasting phase!
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

Visual
Deep and noble ruby color, with elegant purple shades towards the rim of the glass.

Olfactory
The nose is strong, filled mostly with black fruits and earthy flavours: blackcurrant, black cherry, black plum, ripe sour cherry, black mulberry, ripe blackberry, dried cherry, dried black plum, cherry tree wood and black soil dust. An instant later the nose is filled with notes of black pepper, nutmeg, cloves, sweet tobacco, roasted oakwood and some elegant hints of cinnamon.

Gustatory
The wine is dry, with high alcohol level, high acidity and firm tannin. It feels seedy, fruity and quite tannic, with a quite woody and tart accent. This is a young, bold and grippy malbec wine, as it tastes extracted and a bit rough, with overwhelming acidity on the mouthfeel. The wine has a fair balance between fruit and oak, with a nice touch of alcoholic warmth on the mouthfeel and a firm yet angular finale.

Aftertaste
The wine has a long finish and a quite tart, bitter-seedy aftertaste.
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This is definitely a fine wine of Moldova and, with a total of 91.3 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Conclusion: this is a wine that is definitely too young to drink now, as its acidity and tannins has yet to settle down and gain some much desired finesse. We believe that this wine will reach its peak form in the next 2 or 3 years. Despite its youthfulness, it has plenty of tannic grip on the palate, with a ripe character on the mouthfeel and a touch of alcoholic warmth showing through towards the end. We would recommend to pair this wine with meaty dishes that display spicy or smoky hints, like for example a grilled t-bone pepper steak or a black worcestershire fillet steak, so that all those woody notes in the wine will be perfectly complemented by the spiciness of the dish. Enjoy!

WineStatistics tasting results:

EQUINOX
Malbec | 2015

grape: | malbec |

region: Moldova | Stefan-Voda

overall rating: | 91.3 |

maturity: on the rise

conclusion: fine | (highly recommended)

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© The WineStatistics ratings are based solely on our own knowledge of the world of wine and on our personal wine tastes, which may, or may not, differ from yours – the reader. Just remember that there are no absolutes of right and wrong in wine appreciation.