Nicola Catena planted his first Malbec vineyard in Mendoza in 1902. His grandson, Nicolás Catena, is known as the man who revolutionized Argentine wine and introduced high altitude Malbec to the world. The Historic Catena Zapata vineyards are planted with the Catena family’s proprietary selection of malbec plants: the Catena Cuttings. Catena Alta Malbec is sourced from Block 18 of the Angélica vineyard, Block 4 of the La Pirámide vineyard, Block 1 of the Nicasia vineyard, Block 6 of the Angélica Sur vineyard and Block 9 of the Adrianna vineyard.

The 2010 Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino is a blend of grapes from Adrianna and Nicasia, from the deepest, coolest soils in those vineyards, in Gualtallary and Altamira. They were looking for something that represents the essence of Malbec. The first vintage for this wine was 2004, when they finally found the blend and character they were looking for. The name they wanted to use for the wine was Malbec Puro, but they didn’t want any confusion with cigars, so they called it Malbec Argentino instead.

Weather: The 2010 Harvest is all about low quantity and high quality. If there was ever a year to show that low yields matter for quality, 2010 was it. The low yields were due to a cold spring that delayed bud break and some scattered frosts that led to uneven flowering in many areas. Perfectly ripe, healthy grapes with great concentration have characterized this vintage.

Vinification: 20% whole cluster and 80% whole berry fruit is hand-loaded into 225-500 liter new French oak barrels for a 100% barrel fermentation for a period of 30 - 32 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 wine is aged in French oak barrels for 24 months. Adrianna Malbec component is co- fermented with Viognier and Nicasia Malbec component is co- fermented with Cabernet Franc.

Technical Information:
Grape: 100% Malbec
Vineyards: Adrianna & Nicasia
Winemaker: Alejandro Vigil
Alcohol: 14 %
Total Acidity: 6.3 grams/liter
pH: 3.6
Production: 11,400 Bottles
Unfined and unfiltered

Tasting Note: A blend of the dense mocha flavours from the Adrianna vineyard, and Nicasia’s graphite, woody profile. A brilliant match of pure blueberry fruit with lifted violets and a savoury nut complexity on the palate. The mouth filling freshness is wonderful, and simply unrivalled from this side of the equator.