El Esteco Malbec 2023 Wine Review

Natalie's Score: 92/100

El Esteco's Malbec from Cafayate Valley, Salta is a plush, medium-bodied red wine offering notes of blackberry, ripe plum, dark spice and toasted oak. This dry wine displays supple tannins and juicy fruit that will continue to develop over the next nine years. Serve it at room temperature with grilled lamb chops as the wine's richness complements the charred meat, or pair it with roasted vegetable empanadas where the wine's fruit balances the savory filling. Winemaker Alejandro Pepa ages this well-crafted Malbec in oak barrels to add subtle spice while preserving the wine's vibrant fruit character. The El Esteco estate sits at over 1,700 meters elevation in the Cafayate Valley, where intense sunshine and dramatic day-night temperature swings create Malbec of remarkable concentration and freshness, with higher altitudes producing wines quite different from Mendoza's lower-elevation expressions. This fruit-forward Malbec represents excellent quality and will drink beautifully through 2035.

Malbec food pairings: grilled vegetables, lamb kebabs, pork chops from the grill.

Venerated Vegetarian Wine

This El Esteco Malbec 2023 was reviewed on January 10, 2026 by Natalie MacLean

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Please note that our reviews are based on a variety of sources: samples sent to our team, those we purchase in store, tasting events, those tasted in restaurants and while traveling domestically and internationally.

Recipes for El Esteco Malbec 2023

• Balsamic Grilled Radicchio with Shaved Pecorino
• Chargrilled Lamb Cutlets with Oregano and Hot Feta Dressing
• Chorizo Pasta Sauce with Fresh Thyme
• Stir-Fry Beef Tenderloin
• More recipes...