Have you ever tasted a wine so unique you drink slowly to savor every last drop because you don’t want to ever meet the bottom of the bottle? But then the wine is SO good you all too easily finish the bottle in one sitting? Yeah, that happened with Gen del Alma’s JiJiJi 2017.
Gen del Alma is the wine project of husband and wife team Gerardo Michelini and Andrea Muffato. Gerardo, of Zorzal wines, and his winemaker wife started Gen del Alma in 2012. The couple planted their own vineyards near the vineyards of Zorzal in the Gualtallary terroir.
Never heard of Gualtallary? I’ll be honest…I had not. Upon a bit of Google searching I found that Gualtallary is a high-altitude wine region located in Argentina’s Northern Uco Valley. This Northern most sub-region of the Uco Valley is known as Tupungato and within Tupungato lies the Gualtallary terroir along with the Gen del Alma vines.
Gen del Alma aims to allow the fruit to do the talking, so to speak. Gerardo and Andrea implement minimal vinification processes in order to accomplish this goal. Think hand-harvesting grapes, some concrete egg fermentation, and even carbonic maceration. The resulting wines have received accolades from Wine Advocate, Decanter, and now Palm & Vine! 😉
I have yet to try Gen del Alma’s Gene, a red blend of 50% Malbec, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, and 15% Merlot. Nor have I yet tried Gen del Alma’s Otra Piel, a blend of 60% Cabernet Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 10% Pinot Noir. However, I feel beyond grateful to have crossed paths with Gen del Alma’s JiJiJi because this wine is bananas!
JiJiJi is a blend of 50% Malbec and 50% Pinot Noir. This funky yet very drinkable red blend saw a bit of carbonic maceration and was bottled with some residual carbon dioxide, which showed up as a fun spritz on the palate.
JiJiJi is vibrant throughout from bouquet to finish. Most definitely a fruit forward wine with notes of violets and raspberries on the nose, then rhubarb and red cherries on the palate. I even picked up notes of mushrooms and earthiness from the Pinot Noir. The finish was that of a dark, nectary berry with hints of a watermelon jolly rancher. Completely complex and a lovely drinking experience as a whole.
I paired Gen del Alma’s JiJiJi with juicy, green pears topped with a creamy Touvelle original cheese and drizzled with an aged lavendar balsamic. WOW to say the least. I can’t wait to get my hands on JiJiJi again!
