Although Malbec originated from Cahors, France, centuries ago, it is Argentina who in the last 20 years has
taken this grape and made it so trendy. Today, some 77% percent of Malbec on the market comes from
Argentina followed by France with 11%.
2020 – and MALBEC still the fastest growing red wine in Britain.
YTD
Total red wine value sales are up by 7.9% total market vs last year
Malbec is up 24.4% vs last year ahead of Shiraz 7.6 Merlot 9.2 and Cabernet 7.1
Malbec is now 12.2% in the value share of market having now overtaken Cabernet Sauvignon and
Tempranillo but still behind Merlot and Shiraz
(Sincerest thanks to UK wine buyer Sarah Benson for digging out these figures!)
It was 9 years ago that I shipped my first Malbec to the UK, thanks to the kindness and foresight of the late
John Avery MW who took it on board. The wine has been well received over the years, but the Argentinian
challenge is formidable with the average consumer thinking Malbec=Argentina.
The 2015 vintage saw the first release of the “Nguni” label which told the story of those wonderful cattle
which are so much part of the Darling landscape. The quirky packaging designed by Jane Says with
sketching by local artist Alan McManus, sparked much local interest.
Malbec is a great wine and with a great future and this latest release IMHO, is the best to date. This wine
deserves to go further and show the world what we can do – and so it made sense, now and ahead, to
“formally” partner with Darling Cellars and benefit not only from the expertise of their winemaking team
under Pieter-Niel Rossouw, but to be able to access their wider local and International market. I do not
have the resources to do all of this, but together I believe we can get a South African Malbec on to the
world stage and give them all a Taste of Darling!