Answer: Bush vines- no trellises
What is special about the way Malbec grows?

Malbec is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. In France plantations of Malbec are now found primarily in Cahors in South West France though the grape is grown worldwide. It is increasingly celebrated as an Argentine varietal. The grape b…

Malbec is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. In France plantations of Malbec are now found primarily in Cahors in South West France though the grape is grown worldwide. It is increasingly celebrated as an Argentine varietal. The grape became less popular in Bordeaux after 1956 when frost killed off 75% of the crop. Despite Cahors being hit by the same frost which devastated the vineyards Malbec was replanted and continued to be popular in that area. Winemakers in the region frequently mixed Malbec with Merlot and Tannat to make dark full-bodied wines but have ventured into 100% Malbec varietal wines more recently. A popular but unconfirmed theory claims that Malbec is named after a Hungarian peasant who first spread the grape variety throughout France. French ampelographer and viticulturalist Pierre Galet notes however that most evidence suggests that Côt was the variety's original name and that it probably originated in northern Burgundy. Due to similarities in synonyms Malbec is often confused with other varieties of grape. Malbec argenté is not Malbec but rather a variety of the southwestern French grape Abouriou. In Cahors the Malbec grape is referred to as Auxerrois or Côt Noir; this is sometimes confused with Auxerrois blanc which is an entirely different variety. The Malbec grape is a thin-skinned grape and needs more sun and heat than either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot to mature. It ripens mid-season and can bring very deep color ample tannin and a particular plum-like flavor component which adds complexity to claret blends. Sometimes especially in its traditional growing regions it is not trellised but is instead cultivated as bush vines (the goblet system). In such cases it is sometimes kept to a relatively low yield of about 6 tons per hectare. Wines produced using this growing method are rich dark and juicy. As a varietal Malbec creat… Read more on Wikipedia

Malbec is very susceptible to various grape diseases and viticultural hazards—most notably frost coulure downey mildew and rot— but the development of new clones and vineyard management techniques have helped control some of these potential problems. When it is not afflicted with these various ailments particularly coulure it does have the potential to produce high yields. Malbec seems to be abl…

Malbec is very susceptible to various grape diseases and viticultural hazards—most notably frost coulure downey mildew and rot— but the development of new clones and vineyard management techniques have helped control some of these potential problems. When it is not afflicted with these various ailments particularly coulure it does have the potential to produce high yields. Malbec seems to be able to produce well in a variety of soil types but in the limestone based soils of Cahors it seems to produce its most dark and tannic manifestation. There are distinct ampelographical differences in the clones of Malbec found in France and in Argentina with Argentine Malbec tending to have smaller berries. A comparative research study conducted by the Catena ...

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