An Argentinian winemaker created the first white wine Malbec.
The new white Malbec from Bodega Trivento winemaker Maximiliano Ortiz has just been launched in the United States. “We are the first vineyard to create this flavor of wine, a white wine (Malbec) made from red grapes,” Ortiz says. In this way, a new category of wines evolved. “
Trivento White Malbec 2022 was just released in the United States, and it retails for a suggested price of $11. White Malbec is a milestone for Ortiz, who began experimenting with the idea in 2018.
For starters, Ortiz replaced the 2019 harvest date of March, the same harvest date as before, to the last week of January, when the grapes weren’t as ripe. “We have a gentle, fast pressing to separate the skin from the pulp, and then we add oxygen to the fermentation, with the concept of burning off the color fermentation, and it was trial and error,” Ortiz says.
The first white Malbec was bottled in just 30,000 cases, and the old existing one now amounts to 160,000 cases. “The 2019 was the first old one and it was a smart product, but the 2022, the existing old one that we just launched, and the 2023. . . . I think we have an amazing product,” Ortiz says. “Every year, we apply the techniques. “
“What people love about this wine is that it’s completely different,” Ortiz says. “When you say Malbec, people think of a wine with a lot of red color and red fruit aromas. This is a completely different product. You have the essence of (a regular) Malbec, but in a different format.”
The wine’s appearance, he says, “isn’t just white: it’s crystal clear, beautiful, and water-like. “”First you look at the color, then you smell the wine, and first you smell the aroma of the green apple, which is very pleasant if you’re drinking a Malbec,” he says. “Then you smell the cherries, the strawberries and you smell the soft tannins. You have the tannins, but you also have the acidity of a white wine.
Malbec Blanco has enjoyed wonderful luck in Mexico, where with an import of only 5,000 cases, it has grown to 7,000 cases. It’s also been good luck, he says, in the UK. “It’s a wine that attracts new consumers,” Ortiz says.
White Malbec is ideal for the summer. ” It’s a very comfortable wine and you don’t need food to enjoy it, but it’s a very nice wine,” says Ortiz. Unlike regular Malbec, which goes very well with heavy meats and barbecues, white Malbec pairs wonderfully with seafood, fish and chicken, as well as salads and vegetables.
White Malbec may not be Trivento’s latest innovation, he says. “Every year we work with other things, but the next one is a big secret, so I can’t reveal it yet,” he says, adding that consumers must be looking for something new on the horizon next year.