Van Ardi Red Dry Wine 2021 750ml

ARMENIA : ARAGATSOTN

CERTIFIED ORGANIC : Areni, Haghtanak, Milagh

MED-BODIED, DARK CHERRY, PLUM, WARM SPICE, DARK CHOCOLATE, NEUTRAL OAK

Armenia is one of the oldest wine-producing countries on earth — and Aragatsotn, at 1,050 meters on the volcanic slopes of Mount Aragats, is where Van Ardi grows Areni, Haghtanak, and Milagh on own-rooted, non-grafted vines. The high altitude moderates what would otherwise be a hot, dry climate; the volcanic and limestone soils give the wine its mineral backbone.

Van Ardi was founded in 2008 by Varuzhan Mouradian, a Los Angeles-born Armenian-American who studied oenology and returned to his ancestral region to farm certified organic. The three varieties are vinified separately, then blended and rested before release — 40% spends six months in 2nd- and 3rd-use French and Caucasian barrels, enough to round the tannins without burying the dark fruit and spice that make Armenian red worth paying attention to.

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