Americans  love malbec from Argentina.  It is consistently good, fruit-driven and best of all, a great value at $10-15/bottle.  Argentine exports of bottled Malbec wines grew 20% by value in 2009, then 31.7% in 2010, with the US being the largest global market with about a 35% market share (winesofargentina.org).  Argentine wines are not cheap per se, they are helped by a favorable exchange rate which belie the quality inherent in the wines from unique terroir, natural farming practices and modern winemaking.  But does it warrant luxury status?
The short answer …

At this point, everyone seems to know about the high quality and value proposition of Argentine wines.  Exports of bottled Argentine wines increased 10% by value and 8% by volume from 2008 to 2009, with exports to the US growing 30% and 32%  respectively.  Stats for the first four months of 2010 show no abatement.  This is no small feat given that exports of wine from most major wine regions declined by value during this economically-challenging time.  The US is by far Argentina’s largest export market with a  39% market share by value at …