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Bodega Catena Zapata
Bodega Catena Zapata has been instrumental both in the development of fine wine production in Argentina and in realising the full potential of the Malbec grape.
Laura’s father Nicolás Catena was fascinated by the effects of altitude on the Malbec grape and experimented at higher and higher elevations, which he felt was where the greatest wines could be made. The region of Mendoza has a very long summer season, enabling the grapes to ripen slowly over a long period of time, producing concentrated flavours and tannins, while also retaining acidity due to the high diurnal shift in temperature at such high altitudes.
The property has six different vineyard plots in the subregions of Mendoza and the Uco Valley. Catena Zapata was the first to plant in the Gualtallary region of the Uco Valley; at 1,120 metres’ altitude, many thought it wouldn’t be possible to ripen Malbec here, but it has become one of the finest wine sites in Argentina.
Bodega Catena Zapata set up the Catena Institute in 1999, making it one of the leading wineries in the world for scientific research on viticulture and vinification methods, studying the effect of microbes in the soil and the effects of climate.
In the late 1990s Laura and her father Nicolás Catena realised that while Malbec had its origins in Bordeaux, it was wrong to ferment the grape in the same way as other Bordeaux varieties. At the time Malbec was often highly extracted, with long maceration times to draw out as much colour and tannin as possible.
However, they believed this technique lost all the aromatic appeal of the variety. Therefore, they changed the vinification, making extraction much more gentle and shortening maceration times, stating Malbec should be made more like Pinot Noir rather than Cabernet Sauvignon. With their top Nicolás Catena Zapata blend of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, they ferment the fruit in oak barrels.
