2017 Mauricio Lorca Opalo Malbec Uco Valley Mendoza 750 ml

It all clicked for us when we stepped out of the bright Uco Valley sunlight into a dark tavern nestled in the foothills of the Andes. A deeply tanned farmer, his bolero hat tipped back on his forehead, sat a few chairs down the bar; he had ordered a glass of the 2017 Mauricio Lorca Opalo Malbec, and recommended we do the same.

“Some other Malbecs, they’re like electric guitar,” he said, grimacing and pawing at an invisible Stratocaster like Stevie Ray Vaughan. “They’re throwing a lot of noise and volume at you. Mauricio’s wine is more like acoustic. Warm, intimate, natural—it’s what us farmers like to drink.”

Powerfully concentrated on the nose, full of ripe blackberry and plum, with fine notes of cigar tobacco, leather, and freshly turned soil. Explosive attack of black cherry and violets, weighty and silken on the palate, earthiness and glossy fruit opulence wrapped in an irresistible package. This is top-shelf Uco Valley Malbec and a smashing case-buy deal today at just $17 a bottle. Especially with 94 points from Descorchados, the definitive South American wine journal.

Many wines on the market at this price point take shortcuts to get there that begin in the vineyard and carry on through the process—over-irrigation, chemicals, additives. Lorca makes no such compromises, meaning this is the rare real deal at just $17.

Lorca is an anomaly in the region for his complete avoidance of oak at any point in the fermentation or aging process. That approach, paired with the kind of high-altitude, high-density farming that yields just a single bottle per vine, has yielded a Malbec of thrilling fruit purity and poise.

The gifted winemaker works under pastel blue skies, at altitudes of up to 3,400 feet above sea level, high enough that the sun and streaky clouds above feel within reach. The high-density plantings—2,600 per acre—result in less overall fruit, but beautiful, even ripening and the kind of rich concentration that sends the 2017 Opalo rolling across your tongue.

This is meticulously farmed Malbec available at a basement bargain value that can’t be beaten.