Region: Clare Valley, SA


This wine delivers a huge dollop of black fruits at a remarkable price. We sold most of it to a client in Sydney mid last year. At last the fruit of our wholesaling business has arrived as the tiny amount left over is now offered to Glug customers. While 100% malbec wines are making Argentine famous in the world of wine they are uncommon in Australia. They have though been used in the Clare Valley to blend with cabernet, a trend perhaps started by the Knappstein family who owned the Stanley Wine Company.

Perhaps some readers can recall the extra-ordinary Leasingham Bin 56 Cabernet Malbec blends of the 1960’s and 1970’s. This wine was part of a number of parcels we purchased from the Cooper Kauffmann who had leased the Kamberra winery, Canberra and had speculated on a grand scale, and ran into all sorts of trouble. They did know how to make though as a parcel they made from fruit around Canberra went on to win the Jimmy Watson in 2009. Anyway back to this malbec. We liked it exactly how it was and bottled it without blending with other varieties. We are happy with this decision. Here is a tasting note by David Farmer; “Deep crimson black colour, incredibly youthful and typical for malbec. Strong aroma laden with black fruits, mulberries and blackberries, pungent and powerful; big upfront ripe fruit, soft full flavoured palate with a grip on the finish but soft, though it does tighten as you sip.”

The Hawker Brothers, George, Charles and James, were Clare pastoralists in the 1880’s and a common theme of ours is to take historic pioneers to name our wines.