El Enemigo Gran Enemigo El Cepillo 2020

El Cepillo is one of the single-vineyard wines in the Gran Enemigo range made by Alejandro Vigil at Bodega Aleanna in Mendoza, alongside Adrianna Catena. It is built on Vigil's preferred 85/15 blend of Cabernet Franc and Malbec, drawn from a high-altitude site in the Uco Valley. The stony, limestone-influenced soils and the cold Andean nights give the wine its acidity and tight structure, while the strong day-to-night temperature swing at altitude slows ripening and preserves the leafy, savoury aromatics of Cabernet Franc. Ageing is fifteen months in large foudres, where the gentler oxygen exchange of big-format oak rounds the firm tannins without masking the fruit or the marked site character. The wine is deep ruby and concentrated. The nose shows dark plum, redcurrant and a peppery herb note over tobacco and fine cedar. The palate is full and structured, with ripe but fresh fruit, fine-grained tannin and the cutting acidity of high-altitude growing carrying a long, savoury finish. Serve at 17 to 18 degrees and decant an hour ahead. It is made for roast and grilled red meat and earthy dishes.