Every year on April 17th, Argentina and the world celebrate Malbec World Day — a global initiative created by Wines of Argentina to position Argentine Malbec as one of the most prominent wines in the world and celebrate the success of the national wine industry. The celebration is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Argentine Agency for Investment and International Trade, and the Argentine Wine Corporation (COVIAR), within the framework of the Viticultural Strategic Plan Argentina 2020.
First celebrated on April 17, 2011, Malbec World Day has established itself as a landmark event in the global promotion of wine and is today part of the international calendar of cultural and commercial celebrations. Every year, throughout the month of April, Wines of Argentina coordinates a varied agenda of activities in key markets around the world, complemented by events organised by Argentine representations abroad and independent initiatives.
Why April 17?
The date commemorates a pivotal moment in Argentine viticultural history. On April 17, 1853, French agronomist Michel Aimé Pouget — commissioned by statesman Domingo Faustino Sarmiento — presented a project to the Provincial Legislature of Mendoza to establish a Quinta Normal and Agricultural School. It was through this initiative that Malbec first arrived in Argentina, introducing new grape varieties to enhance the national wine industry. The project was approved by the House of Representatives on 6 September of that same year.
For Wines of Argentina, April 17 represents not only a symbol of the transformation of Argentina's wine industry but also the starting point for the development of a grape that would become an emblem of the country worldwide.
Argentina and Malbec: an emblematic story
Originally from the southwest of France — where it has been cultivated since the Roman Empire under the appellation "Cahors" — Malbec arrived in Argentina as a European variety that had fallen into near oblivion following the phylloxera plague of the late nineteenth century. In Argentina, it found new life. Adapting to the diverse terroirs of the country's viticultural regions, it developed with even greater results than in its region of origin, becoming the country's flagship grape and an emblematic case in which a nation achieved direct association with a varietal.
Today, Argentina is the world's leading producer of Malbec. With over 109,000 acres under cultivation, Malbec represents 38.6% of total red varieties and 22.4% of the total cultivated area in the country — and since 2000, its surface area has grown by 171%. Argentina also holds a Controlled Designation of Origin (DOC) for Malbec in select regions, with Malbec Luján de Cuyo recognised as the first Denomination of Origin of the Americas.
It was thanks to the drive of the Argentine wine industry that Malbec revealed its true potential: its versatility, elegance and opulence, becoming the centre of the most audacious innovations in the global wine scene over the past two decades.