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  • Country ranking ?

    25
  • Producer ranking ?

    8
  • Decanting time

    2h
  • When to drink

    now to 2035

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The Story

With its inaugural 1997 vintage, Nicolás Catena Zapata became the first luxury cuvée from Argentina to be exported around the world. The wine recreates the “Original Bordeaux Blend” of the 18th and 19th Centuries, when Malbec dominated over Merlot and was in equal standing to Cabernet Sauvignon in the Médoc. Prephylloxeric Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon massale selections of ungrafted vines give rise to this wine, opening a window to the past f...

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Wine Information

The harvest is done by hand, and some parcels are fermented as whole bunches to enhance tannic structure and freshness. The fermentation takes place in 500 liter oak barrels, concrete and stainless-steel tanks, at temperatures of 26-28ºC for about 10-15 days. The post-fermentative maceration lasts between 5 and 10 days.

The wine carries out its malolactic fermentation and is then aged in French oak barrels for 18 months.

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Vintage 1999

De-stemmed, whole berry fruit is hand-loaded into 225-500 liter new French oak foudres for a 100% barrel fermentation for a period of 18 days, allowing seamless oak integration. The fermentation temperature is kept low, extracting intense aromas, and the cap management is done by hand to ensure soft, gentle flavors and tannin extraction. Wild yeasts. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentation in barrel leaves considerable lees and sediment. The win...

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Latest Pro-tasting notes

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Tasting note

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Written Notes

Ruby, brick rim. Red berries, anise, some herbs and liquorice nose, leaner. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, anise, red fruits, bit oxidative, good length. 87

  • 87p

(13.8% alcohol; 6.0 g/l acidity; 3.45 pH): Healthy dark red. Highly aromatic scents of dark plum, chocolate and smoke. Rounder and sweeter than the 1997 bottling but showing a bit less lift and detail than the earlier vintage. The plum and chocolate notes carry through onto the palate. Finishes with good density and length, an intriguing saline note and chewy, ripe tannins. (There was no 1998 bottling as this was a disastrous El Niño vintage in Argentina during which steady rainfall led to rot before the fruit ripened properly. In fact, Catena bottled only their inexpensive, entry-level Alamos wines in ‘98.) – Stephen Tanzer (Oct 2016) 90p

  • 90p
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Information

Origin

Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza

Other wines from this producer

Adrianna Vineyards Chardonnay White Bones Single Vineyard

Alamos Pinot Noir

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Catena Alta Cabernet Sauvignon

Catena Alta Chardonnay

Catena Alta Malbec

Catena Cabernet Sauvignon

Catena Chardonnay

Catena Malbec

Catena Malbec 350cc

Catena Zapata Adrianna Malbec

Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard Malbec

Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino

Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec

Luca Pinot Noir

Malbec Adrianna Vineyard Fortuna Terrae

Saint Felicien Semillon Doux

Inside Information

Harvest time varies depending on each lot's soil composition. Harvest time can vary by several weeks between one lot and another within the same vineyard.

  • La Pirámide Vineyard: 3,117 ft (950 m). Agrelo District, Luján de Cuyo Region, Mendoza, Argentina. Deep alluvial loam with 30% clay that decreases soil temperature by 35,6ºF (2ºC) in average. Cabernet Sauvignon.
  • Adrianna Vineyard: 4,757 ft (1,450 m). Gualtallary District, Tupungato Region, Uco Valley, Mendoza, Argentina. Alluvial, gravelly with limestone deposits in the topsoil. Malbec.
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