Carmelo Patti was an important part of the Mendoza wine scene long before the area became an international destination. He was a year old when his family emigrated from Sicily to Argentina, and it could be argued that the Italians have had as much of an influence on Mendoza wine culture as the French. Nevertheless, Patti focuses on “Bordeaux” varieties (Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc) crafted in a resolutely non-interventionist style: no chemicals, no added yeasts, and mostly used oak for aging.

Patti favors a very traditional, “naked” approach to crafting his wines. This Malbec is fermented using only ambient yeasts and aged in concrete tanks for 12 months. It is then transferred to French oak barrels, where it ages for another 12 months before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. Patti typically waits longer still to release the wines into the market—most wines aren’t released until five years from the vintage (at a minimum).

Inky purple-black in the glass, this 2018 has plenty of body but is hardly a monolith. It is a gutsy, spicy, earthy take on Malbec that wouldn’t be out of place in its French home of Cahors. Aromas and flavors of black plum, cassis, damp violet, wild herbs, grill char, and a hint of black pepper grace the medium-bodied palate. There’s an appealing jolt of freshness and relatively fine-grained tannins—in all, a Malbec with beautiful aromatics and lots of energy. Pair with steak or lamb off the grill.