Estate management handover at Bodegas CARO

Bodegas CARO, the Argentinean estate of the Catena and Rothschild (Lafite) families, is happy to welcome Philippe Rolet as Estate Manager starting on January 21st. 
Previously CEO of Bodegas Argento S.A., Rolet began his career at Domaine William Fèvre, (France) before joining the Alta Vista Group in Mendoza where he was CEO and President. Aged 46, he holds a French Management degree and is today at the head of the French Honorary Consulate in Mendoza.

Fernando Buscema, the Technical Director of Bodegas CARO since 2012, will be joining the Catena Institute of Wine fulltime, where he already holds the position of Executive Director. While taking up his new duties, he will remain involved in the supervision of Bodegas CARO as member of the Board.

“Bodegas CARO is a family affair between us and the Catenas and we are thrilled to welcome Mister Rolet to help us write a new chapter in a story that has strong roots both in France and Argentina, just like him.”, commented Saskia de Rothschild, President of Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite). “Over the past years, Fernando was key in our efforts to build CARO’s identity, looking for the perfect balance between Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec and between two countries. We wish him the best at the Catena Institute.”

Laura Catena, Board member of Bodegas CARO and Founder of the Catena Institute of Wine: “It is an absolute honor for us to make CARO with the Rothschild family, one that shares our passion for making wines of place and caring for the land and the people involved in this beautiful art of winemaking. My father Nicolás and I are thrilled to welcome the talented Philippe Rolet and wish to thank Fernando for his dedication to helping our two families make a Grand Vin in Argentina. I am personally looking forward to continue working with Fernando at the Catena Institute, and to experience the yearly harvests of CARO with Saskia, Philippe and the winery team for many decades to come.”

About Bodegas CARO: 
The idea of a partnership between Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and the Catena family was born in 1998. The initial enthusiasm quickly developed into a plan to produce a unique wine that would combine two cultures, French and Argentine, two grape varieties, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, and the expertise of both families. Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and the Catena family place great importance on selecting the location of the vineyards. The objective is to choose the best terroirs to enhance the alliance between Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. 
Bodegas CARO produces three wines: CARO, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec that reveals the harmonious balance between the Argentine and Bordeaux styles; AMANCAYA, a delicate wine with the same spirit as CARO, and ARUMA, a pure Malbec.

Harvest Report 2017:

During the 2016/17 season, budbreak occurred on its usual date, at the end of September, with warm days after a rigorous winter. Following a normal flowering, fruit set was affected by a frost on October 21 that caused a large decrease in the number of berries per bunch, reducing the 2017 harvest.

Veraison began on its usual date in January, although it lasted for three weeks, ending in early February. During the sprouting period, rainfall of 188 mm was recorded, slightly higher than the historical 102 mm, and temperatures were close to the usual records.

After summer, the month of February gave us nights up to four degrees warmer than usual. This phenomenon, along with a drier trimester, helped to anticipate the harvest between two and three weeks.

First Zone, Mendoza

Unlike the Uco Valley, sprouting took place a couple of weeks later than usual, towards the end of September. After normal flowering, fruit set also was affected by a frost on October 21 that caused, in this area too, a large decrease in the number of berries per bunch, reducing the 2017 harvest.
As in the Uco Valley, veraison began on its usual date in January, although it lasted for three weeks, ending in early February. During the budbreak/veraison period, rainfall of 108 mm was recorded, coinciding with historical records, and temperatures were close to the usual ones.
After the summer, despite the warm February nights and dry days, the harvest occurred at its usual date in the first two weeks of April, due to a sprouting delay in this area.

AN EXCEPTIONAL YEAR FOR MALBEC

Malbec is very sensitive to low temperatures during the fruit set. The frost of October 21 led to reduce the production between 25 and 50%, depending on the area and the plot. However, Malbec benefited greatly from the dry and warm days after the summer, which allowed it to reach the typical expression of the high altitude vineyards of Mendoza. The grapes were characterized by their unique balance between sugar and acidity, along with the traditional softness of Malbec tannins.
The Malbec harvest in the First Zone took place between March 13 and April 11. In the Uco Valley, the harvest was carried out between March 15 and 29 of the same month, which implied an anticipation of up to three weeks for some plots.

A BALANCED SEASON FOR CABERNET SAUVIGNON

Wetter days prior to veraison contributed to the different plots, evolving according to their type of soil. The Cabernet Sauvignon from deeper soils had a slower maturity, while those from stony soils reached an excellent balance and their typical spicy character with greater agility.
The Cabernet Sauvignon harvest began on March 23 and ended on April 7, being all these grapes from the Uco Valley and with an anticipation of up to three weeks for some plots.

The idea of forming a partnership between Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and the Catena family was born in 1999. Initial enthusiasm quickly became a concrete plan to produce a single wine that would combine French and Argentine cultures and the two signature grapes of each producer, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon.

The Catena family has produced wine for three generations. Consequently, it was able to draw on its vast knowledge of the high altitude terroirs of the Mendoza region as well as its passion for Malbec to find the best vineyards. DBR (Lafite) contributed its centuries-old skills in growing, vinifying and ageing great Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as its know-how in blending different grape varieties to produce one wine that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Exchanges and selection work began in 1999 to produce CARO’s first vintage in 2000. The success of the early vintages resulted in the creation of another wine in 2003: AMANCAYA which, like its older brother, is based on a harmonious balance between Argentinian identity and Bordeaux style. Bodegas CARO then decided to celebrate the grape variety for which Argentina’s vineyards are famous by selecting a pure Malbec, ARUMA, starting with the 2010 vintage.

The Bodegas CARO winery, in the heart of Mendoza, has been producing the wines since the 2003 vintage and serves as the anchor of the CARO project. The renovation of the historic building and gardens in order to expand the winery and open the Bodega to the outside brings the final touch to the original project.

The grapes selected for CARO come from Bodegas CARO’s vineyard and from the best vineyards we have selected as the most representative of the great terroirs of Mendoza and known for the high quality of their Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon.

These terroirs are located :

– In the “First zone”, in  Luján de Cuyo and Maipú :
The region is known as the First Zone because it was the first place where Malbec was planted in Mendoza. The wines coming from this area are acknowledged to be among the best in the country. The altitude ranges from 800 to 950 metres and the average temperature range is 23ºC (max)/ 8ºC (min).

– In the Uco Valley, in Tunuyán, Tupungato and San Carlos:
This is an up-and-coming wine region, located one hour south of Mendoza. The landscape of this area is impressive, with glaciers and year-round snow overlooking the adjacent river and the vineyards.  The altitude range is here 1000 to 1600 metres and the average temperature range is 22ºC (max)/ 7ºC (min).

Winemaking and technical aspects are managed by Fernando Buscema. Olivier Trégoat, Technical Director for DBR (Lafite) estates outside Bordeaux, provides technical supervision.

Bodegas CARO lies the heart of the Mendoza region in cellars that were built between 1884 and 1895, which have been completely renovated.

Fernando Buscema is a passionate winemaker and researcher. He is a fifth-generation winemaker and was born in the heart of Mendoza, one of the world’s most well-known winemaking regions. After graduating with honors at Don Bosco School of Enology, Fernando joined the Catena Zapata family in 2005. In 2007, after showing a clear devotion for quality and attention to detail, he became Research & Development Director.

Fernando has vast international winemaking experience and has worked in several wineries in Italy and California. In 2012, Buscema earned a master’s degree from the Department of Viticulture and Enology at the prestigious University of California, Davis. While at UC Davis, Buscema worked and lectured with famous professor Dr. Roger Boulton. Particularly, Fernando was engaged in groundbreaking research regarding growing Malbec in various geographic areas in Argentina and the United States.

In November 2012, Buscema joined Bodegas CARO as Technical Director. Since then, Fernando has overseen the winemaking at CARO with the collaboration of the technical team from Domaines Barons de Rothschild. When not entrenched in the demands of winemaking, Buscema enjoys having traditional Argentine asado with his friends, reading a good book, playing soccer and skiing.

Harvests are carried out by hand and the grapes are sorted on tables before de-stemming. Vinification is traditional with gentle pumping-over, followed by a period of maceration that varies in length depending on grape variety and vintage. Each vintage is aged in oak barrels, 18 months for CARO and 12 months for Amancaya. Most of the barrels are made at the DBR’s Cooperage in Bordeaux. Blending takes place during the months of September and October.

Malbec is a powerful, exuberant very fruity grape variety, that benefits from the structure and elegance given by the Cabernet. These two grape varieties go well together and gain complexity thanks to the rich high-altitude terroirs, offering great wines with good ageing potential.