Meet the Little Argentine Region Making Stellar Wines
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When we talk about wine from Argentina, two things immediately come to mind: Mendoza and Malbec. The former is indisputably the country’s most well-known region, and the latter is the South American nation’s star grape. However, that’s beginning to change. As Argentina’s wine industry has matured, the distinct terroirs of specific regions have become more prominent, and at the same time, other varieties are getting a share of Malbec’s spotlight. Case in point: Mendoza’s newest sub-region, San Pablo GI (Geographic Indication) is being hailed as the home turf of some of Argentina’s best wines made from a surprisingly wide range of varieties.
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Precision matters when delineating grape-growing areas; San Pablo falls within the department of Tunuyán, a designated subregion of the Uco Valley, which itself is a Mendoza subregion. When our book Wines of the Southern Hemisphere was released in 2014, wine folk were just beginning to talk about the importance of areas such as Uco Valley. Tunuyán itself had not come to prominence yet, and although San Pablo had been named by Jesuit missionaries during the colonial era and was planted with a smattering of vineyards, it was nowhere near being considered a prime up-and-coming location as recently as 10 years ago.
All that changed thanks to the efforts of three pioneering bodegas (the Spanish word for winery) in this high-altitude region where vineyards soar to between 3,850 and 5,580 feet above sea level. Patricia Ortiz, owner of Bodega Tapiz, Sebastián Zuccardi, proprietor of Familia Zuccardi, and José Galante, Salentein’s chief winemaker, worked together to push for the recognition of San Pablo as a designated region whose name could be included on wine labels. Zuccardi believes that San Pablo deserves this status “because its particular characteristics make it unique: the combination of altitude, proximity to the mountains, and alluvial soils with granite rocks covered in calcium carbonate,” he says. While his colleague Galante makes special note of how the altitude creates brightness on the palate. “At [these] elevations the vineyards benefit from exceptional climatic conditions,” Galante says. “The cool temperatures help preserve the acidity of the grapes. This cool climate, combined with optimal sun exposure, promotes slow maturation, resulting in wines with great freshness, complexity, and character.”
In addition to Malbec, Cabernet Franc, and Chardonnay, Familia Zuccardi is experimenting with white varieties here including Riesling, Verdejo, Albari?o, Semillon, and Sauvignon Blanc. Familia Zuccardi Finca Las Cuchillas Chardonnay offers what Zuccardi calls “austerity and elegance.” There’s a strong sense of minerality alongside citrus and dried herb notes in the wine, which Zuccardi believes could only be obtained in San Pablo. “The cold climate combined with calcareous material offers extraordinary conditions for cultivating white wines,” he says.
Said to be the first bodega to plant vines in the region, Bodegas Salentein put down roots in San Pablo in 1996. Galante says its Grand Vu blend is an example of how great this region can be for Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. “The altitude, cool climate, and soils of the valley give the wine a unique balance of concentration, freshness, and elegance,” he says. “This wine could not achieve its complex aromas, flavors, refreshing acidity, and tannin texture without the special conditions.” Besides the Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec for its proprietary blend, Salentein also grows Chardonnay and Pinot Noir here.
Bodega Tapiz Las Notas de Jean Claude Merlot is sourced from estate vineyards at 4,430 feet above sea level and is a collaboration between winemakers Fabian Valenzuela and Jean Claude Berrouet, who made wine at Petrus for 44 vintages. Other notable wineries growing grapes in San Pablo are Bodega Norton, Díaz Valentín, Familia Pelegrina, and Diego Rosso, while a new entry within the region is Bodegas Caro, a winery alliance between Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and Nicolás Catena. Most recently, they purchased a new plot of land named Finca Désiré. After taking over 100 separate soil samples, the winemaking team identified the best locations to plant their flagship Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, and—something unusual for them—Chardonnay.
Bodega Caro winemaker Philippe Rolet points to San Pablo’s high rainfall as another factor that makes it so special. While other areas within the arid semi-desert of Mendoza, where Caro already has a large presence, may only receive just under eight inches of rainfall per year, San Pablo can be blessed by between almost 10 inches and just shy of 20 inches depending on location and altitude. Rolet says this colder, wetter climate, compared to others in the surrounding Uco Valley, offers “more tension and freshness” to the finished wine. In addition to using fruit grown here for its flagship blend, Rolet expects to release single-vineyard, single-variety Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon as well as a Chardonnay that will be available in 2025. With all this development in a short span of time, we’re excited to see what comes next from the small yet lofty San Pablo.
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