Rutini Wines

The Rutini family winemaking tradition began in the early 19th century in Le Marche, Italy, when Francisco Rutini started making wines for the inhabitants of his native town, Ascoli Piceno. Thereafter, his only son Felipe Rutini immigrated to the Americas to extend the winemaking tradition. It was in Coquimbito, Maipú, in the province of Mendoza Argentina that he planted his first vines, further starting the Rutini Wines legacy. Since its foundation in 1885, Rutini Wines has been recognized for its extraordinary quality and character of its wines.  As Don Felipe Rutini built the winery under the slogan ¨Labor and Perseverance¨, he created a lasting legacy for top quality wines in Argentina. 

Don Felipe continued developing his vineyard in Maipú, and thereafter expanded his operations to Los Corralitos and Medrano regions of Mendoza. This expansion duplicated the capacity of the winery, as it brought in large vats and Nancy oak barrels from France.  

Don Felipe passed away in 1919, leaving his descendents in charge of the company.  Continuing the excellence and tradition, the Rutini family began to develop further the production of fine white and red varietals such as Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec. Later on, the Chenin grape was also incorporated.

Leading the industry in 1925, the Rutini family planted the first vineyards in Tupungato, in the heart of the Uco Valley. Named after one of Mendoza´s mountain peaks, the Tupungato Valley was no more than a stop-over on the road to the mountains when the Rutini family began to plants their first vines. At an elevation of 3000 to 5000 feet (900 to 1500 meters) above sea level, the Tupungato Valley offers many different microclimates, creating optimal growing conditions. Today it y recognized as one of Mendoza´s premier viticulture regions.

Combining the long tradition of production and wish to constantly evolve and innovate, Rutini Wines is recognized as one of the most successful and relevant brands of our time. 

Winemaking at Rutini Wines is lead by Mariano Di Paola, who joined the winery in 1995. With over thirty years experience, Mariano is considered one of Argentina´s top winemakers. Mariano´s talent, expertise and individual style are clearly expressed in each and every one of his wines.Mariano was first introduced to the wine industry by his grandfather and father at an early age, but it wasn’t until several years later that he found his passion in wine.

Mariano recalls, ¨I remember one day I was cleaning a tank and I saw a man tasting wines…he was swirling his glass and appreciating the wine ´s aroma and color. ..And I thought, what am I doing here? I should be tasting those wines; I should be doing what he is doing. That same afternoon I went to the local university of Oenology, the Don Bosco University, and decided to enroll.¨
While studying, he worked in several wineries, but his first important job was working alongside Nicolas Catena at Bodega Esmeralda in 1989, as assistant winemaker.

In 1992, he began as head winemaker in another of the Catena´s wineries, Bodega La Antonia. In 1995, he started working at Rutini Wines as production manager and as head winemakers.
In order to further develop himself, he spent the vintages of 1996, 1997 and 2000 working in the Villa Mt Eden winery in California, an exchange that greatly benefited both wineries. Between 1984- 2007 Mariano acted as professor of Oenology at the prestigious Don Bosco University, giving classes about Fermentation. Di Paola has proved himself to be a key figure in the Argentine wine industry. His ultimate challenge is to achieve a ´great wine¨, and for him his best vintage is always the next.
In order to achieve his goal, Mariano encourage effective team work at the winery, and he tries to spread his passion and love into everything he does, ¨if everyone works as a team and with clear, well- defined objectives, we will enjoy even greater success¨ assures Di Paola.

• Rutini still practices 100% hand harvesting and grape selection.
• Picking occurs during the cooler morning hours; upon arrival the grapes are transferred to refrigeration units at the winery entrance that lower the temperature to 50°F, keeping the grapes cool to preserve delicate aromas and prevent oxidation.
• To ensure maximum accuracy in fruit selection, Rutini is the first Argentine winery to use an advanced Optical Grape Sorter, calibrated for preferred grape size, color and shape.
• The simple, clean design of the winery built from cement blocks allows for minimal handling with an emphasis on gravity transfers.
• Di Paola has perfected a gentle pressing technique to slowly sink the cap with an inflatable membrane that compresses and extracts liquid from the crushed skins resulting in more color, flavor and tannin.
• Rutini has nine different types of fermentation vessels, ranging from a custom diamond tank designed to facilitate gentle compression to cement eggs and 600-liter wood fermenters.
• Di Paola and his team have identified and replanted 26 distinct Malbec strains from the best parcels in Mendoza at Tupungato; each lot is vinified separately in 600-liter wood tanks.
• The Rutini barrel room is situated adjacent to the vinification area, designed with thick, cement walls to maintain naturally low temperatures. The winery relies on French oak, sourced from a variety of cooperages and of varying toast. Di Paola prefers a more restrained approach to wood.
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On October 2008, Rutini Wines constructed the first walls of the new winery in The Uco Valley, Mendoza, Argentina. Even though, The Rutini Family was one of the first to plant vineyards in the Tupungato Valley in 1925, it was over 80 years after that the dream to build a modern winery began.

In a race against time, the contemporary construction of the 70000 ft² (6500 m²) state of the art facility was launched. The challenge was met just in time as the winery received its first grapes for that year´s vintage in March of 2009. In total, RW owns 890 acres (360 ha) of vines, all in altitudes ranging from 3444 to 3900 feet above sea level (1050 to 1200 meters m.a.s.l.).

In this place where the winery stands, Rutini Wines owns 370 acres (150 ha) of vines, all in altitudes at 4051 feet above sea level (1235 m.a.s.l).

Rutini, and Trumpeter are elaborated in the Tupungato Winery.

NEW WINERY´S HIGHLIGHTS
- Total Capacity: 1.585 Mill Gal. (7132 l).
- French & American Oak Barrels Capacity: 6.000.
- Optical Grape Selector.
- Roto French oak fermenters.
- Innovative conical tank technology.
- Small Concrete Tanks.
- Traditional method Sparkling Wine facility.
- Sparkling Wine Facility.

Although the Tourism and Hospitality area is not yet complete, the building expresses a special design that includes: illuminated areas, wide-open spaces and beautiful views from the inside and balconies, all creating an element of surprise from the vineyard horizon. The snow-capped mountain of “Cordon del Plata” (Andes Mountains), has a beautiful year long snow-capped view, providing for a picturesque view from every corner.  The impressive stairway that leads to the main entrance in the middle of the building will be surrounded by vines and olive trees, inviting our guests to begin the Rutini Experience.