The Wine

The 2016 Yarden Malbec features ripe cherry, blackberry, plum and mulberry fruit notes, intermingled with nuances of dried flowers, tobacco, spice and earth. This full-bodied wine displays attractive complexity and lingering flavor.

While ready to enjoy now, the 2016 Yarden Malbec should continue improving in the bottle and remain in excellent drinking condition for a decade or more from vintage. We love serving the wine with grilled Malbec-marinated flank steak, rosemary and thyme roast rack of lamb, or a vegetarian Portobello mushroom and blue cheese burger.

The Vintage

2016 was a remarkable vintage. After a routine winter, February saw average daily highs about 4oC (7oF) above normal, setting the stage for a warm spring. Lighter winter rains coupled with normal spring rainfall resulted in 75% of average annual precipitation. A mild summer was not enough to cancel out the impact of the warm spring, resulting in a fast and furious harvest – the shortest in 22 years. The beautiful summer led to wines of exciting quality, proving once again that the vagaries of a particular vintage do not prevent the Golan Heights from producing consistently exceptional wines.

The 2016 Yarden Malbec is produced entirely from Malbec fruit grown in Yonatan Springs Vineyard at an elevation of 700 meters (2,300 feet) above sea level. The wine aged for 18 months in French oak barrels.

The Appellation

The Galilee (or Galil) is the most northern, and generally considered the best, appellation in Israel. The highest quality area within the appellation is the Golan Heights (or simply the Golan), the coldest region in Israel. The vineyards on this volcanic plateau rise from 400 meters (1,300 feet) above sea level to 1,200 meters (3,900 feet) and receive snowfall in the winter. Golan Heights Winery is located in the town of Katzrin in the central Golan.