Altos Los Hormigas, named for the ants that survive in the high altitude and build their colonies, was created by a team that includes Tuscan winemakers Alberto Antonini and Attilio Pagli, Argentine Agronomist Carlos Vazquez and others who saw the unexplored potential of Malbec and the region of Mendoza.

Power, elegance, and finesse seem to unexpectedly find harmony in this extreme appellation, while a kaleidoscope of flavours emerge from its super deeply coloured wines. Its diverse type of limestone, and an altitude that pushes Malbec to the limit give what is arguably the most intriguing version of Mendoza most loved red grape.  The vineyards of Gualtallary rise to nearly a mile above sea level

2018 Altos Las Hormigas Malbec Appellation Gualtallary

$39.89/Bottle Buy Now

Best price online and 20% below the national average

30 bottles in stock

97 WA

The site-specific 2018 Malbec Appellation Gualtallary comes from specific soils, two plots that they believe transmit the maximum expression of limestone to Malbec, giving a structured wine with fine-grained tannins but a little wild. The vines are on stony and gravelly soils with a high percentage of limestone and sand with around 3% clay at 1,300 meters in altitude. 

This comes from sandy soils and very low yields that give it chalkier tannins and a savage way. This has a slightly rustic touch, vertical and with some lightness. There's always a fresh touch of aromatic herbs (thyme and rockrose), with a textured palate and very tasty and clean flavors in the finish. 20,600 bottles were filled in September 2019. -- Luis Gutiérrez – The Wine Advocate

Bodega Catena Zapata. It was Nicolás Catena who thrust Argentinian wine into the modern era. A widely travelled academic economist, he learned from his exposure in the 1970s both to great Bordeaux and the huge promise of Napa wines. In the early 1980s, Catena agreed the key was to plant the right varieties in the right location, specifically cooler, higher sites. - Decanter Wine Legends

2015 Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec

$89.89 Buy Now

22% below the national average

97 JS / 94 WA

Enormously spicy with a dense tannin structure that makes this malbec spectacular and slightly erotic, too. A breathtakingly long finish that makes you want more. The balance of this is so good that you can drink it right now. If you can resist drinking it now, this probably has a couple of decades of aging potential. James Suckling

2015 Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard Fortuna Terrae Malbec

The “Luck of the Land” in South America’s “Grand Cru”

$96.99/bottle Buy Now

27% below the national average

97 JS / 95 WA / 95 WS

Very complex aromas of blueberries and blackberries with hints of cheese and wet earth. Hot stones, too. Full-bodied, dense and layered with lots of firm yet polished tannins and a gorgeous finish. Succulent. So delicious. You'll want to drink this now! But better in 2020. James Suckling

2017 Catena Nicolas Catena Zapata

Recreating the “Original Bordeaux Blend”

$83.89/bottle Buy Now

19% below the national average 

97 JS / 95 WA / 95 VM

Bright medium ruby. Vibrant aromas of blueberry, violet, licorice, spices and bitter chocolate; this really stands out among Catena's 2017 reds for its floral character. Juicy and tightly wound but not a bit hard, communicating a distinctly primary quality to its densely packed flavors of crushed black fruits, violet, bitter chocolate and minerals. Boasts terrific energy and penetrating grip for this special bottling, finishing dense and extremely long but not at all heavy, with serious but perfectly buffered tannins saturating the tongue and teeth. This really fills the olfactories! But lay this beauty down and forget about it for three or four years. My sample retained its verve for many days in the recorked bottle.-- Stephen Tanzer, Vinous Media