This luscious red comes from Zuccardi - an outstanding, third generation family cellar founded in the 1960s by Don Alberto Zuccardi. A decade before, he'd started an irrigation company, then planted a vineyard to demonstrate to other producers how his system could benefit grape quality. The rest, as they say, is history, and Zuccardi have become one of the leading cellars in Mendoza. Today his grandson Sebastián is winemaker, assisted by Rubén Ruffo. This is a silky, elegant red, with Syrah adding spicy red fruits and structure to Malbec's darker velvety berry notes. Recommended with chilli, a beef stir-fry or on its own.

Savour a delicious 93p Malbec with with "fabulous fruit concentration" (Halliday) from a cool-climate single vineyard and the excellent Bryan Currie. Though a Hunter Valley winery, Hungerford Hill uses fruit from both Tumbarumba and Hilltops (they were the first winery to use Tumbarumba fruit, the second to use fruit from Hilltops). “Ripe, plush, weighty and inviting with fabulous fruit concentration and a faint sanguine edge. Dark berry fruit plus scented red rose petals and a hint of musk. Just the right amount of varietal rusticity. 93pts” (Toni Paterson, The Halliday Wine Companion).

Inviting and complex aromatics welcome you into this wine; brambly, leafy notes backed up by deep dark fruit with subtle spice and char interplay on the nose. There is a deceptive density to this wine's aroma that hints at what lies beyond. The 2016 release builds on that breakthrough style - the wine shows plush generosity but there is a layering of flavours and complexity to this vintage that invites not just a second but third look. Generous, accessible primary fruit sits pretty up front but let the wine breathe and suddenly these dry, fine and lightly chewy tannins build on the back palate, lending a savoury edge to the dark fruit finish of this baby.

Argentine Malbec doesn't get much finer than this. From a Bordeaux wine family, Hervé came to South America to look for a vineyard and fell in love with old vine Malbec. He not only bought vineyards but also made his home there. Having started in Mendoza, he now has an estate in Patagonia too. He runs his properties like a top Bordeaux château, with impressive barrel cellar and meticulous attention to detail. This hugely impressive cuvée comes from 30 year old Malbec vines grown in Patagonia's Río Negro. Made like a fine claret, the juice was pumped over to extract colour from grape skins during fermentation then aged for 12 months in French oak barriques. Silky with violet and liquorice aromas and dense black fruit, it's perfect with beef.

Moreishly fruity, Alambrado is from Familia Zuccardi, one of the finest cellars in all Argentina. Zuccardi are three times winner of Argentina’s ‘Top Value Brand’, presented by IWC, and family head José Alberto Zuccardi was given a lifetime achievement award by IWC in 2016. The family enjoy state of the art facilities in Maipo and Uco, yet remain committed to employing the local families who have served the company since José’s father’s time. This smooth, fruity Malbec is simple and tasty, with lots of easy-going fruit. A perfect midweek wine, with or without food, and here in a handy quarter size.

Bleasdale is “one of the most historic wineries in Australia ... in 2015 celebrating 165 years of continuous winemaking by the direct descendants of the founding Potts family.” (Halliday). Among many major awards, they’ve won the Jimmy Watson Trophy.

Clare Valley’s Jim Barry is a name known around the world – a byword for quality and wine expertise. A founding member of Australia’s First Families of Wine, the Barry family celebrated the 60th anniversary of its winery in 2020, the year it also scooped the title of Halliday’s ‘Winery of the Year’. Over three generations the Barry name has been famous throughout the wine world and synonymous with the Clare Valley. Jim Barry bought his first vineyard here in 1959, and even helped the Taylor family open their winery a decade later. Son Peter took over Jim Barry in 1985, and today brothers Tom and Sam, with sister Olivia, have raised the bar even higher. Tom and Sam have been shortlisted for Halliday's Winemaker of the Year 2026. This is a new exclusive, a succulent Malbec from the Clare Valley's high altitude Eastern Ranges.