Pinot Noir - In The Andes.

Pinot Noir to sommeliers and wine connoisseurs is the one relationship which lasts forever and most of them fall in love with it at the very first sight. This grape is regarded as one of the most finicky ones to work with and has been in existence since the Roman era (1st century AD.) Pinot Noir has produced new varieties like Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris, and a few others due to its habit of mutation. Pinot Noir buds early and ripens early as well. It showcases excellent characteristics in a combination of temperate climate along with limestone, clay, and chalky soil. Its thin skin is prone to rot and other fungal diseases like downy and powdery mildew. 

@Pinot Noir Grape Bunches.

Globally the plantation of Pinot Noir is almost 70,000 hectares, out of which 29,000 hectares are solely in France (a majority of the plantings are in Burgundy & Champagne), followed by the USA in regions likes Sonoma County, Russian River Valley and Oregon. Germany ranks third, and Pinot Noir is known as ‘Spätburgunder’ there, and the finest expressions come from regions like Baden, Pfalz and Rheingau. It is called ‘Blauer Burgunder’ in Austria, where it is grown in Burgenland. Australia is a warm region that still finds microclimates in places such as Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula where baked and jammy characteristics are evident; however, Tasmania has been developing excellent quality Pinot Noir since the last two decades. In New Zealand, regions such as Martinborough, Wairarapa in the Northern Island; Marlborough and Central Otago in the Southern Island, are widely known for making top-quality Pinot Noir.

Pinot Noir is produced across the globe, but a country which is known for having a dry and hot climate, also popular for producing top quality Malbec’s has almost 2,000 hectares of Pinot Noir under vines in the Andes mountains. Argentina has discovered plantings of historic vineyards of Pinot Noir in Patagonia, which date back to 1932. These vineyards are benefited by the winds, resulting in a moderate climate, and heavy soils lead in producing complex wines. Mendoza produces almost 75% of the total Pinot Noir production in Argentina. Vineyards are usually planted at higher altitudes (1,300 meters) in Uco Valley in Tupungato. In contrast, few enthusiastic vignerons like ‘Bodega Trapiche’ are experimenting by planting the vineyards named ‘Chapadmalal’ just a few kilometres away from the sea.

Let us talk about some iconic producers in Argentina who have a chance to stand tall and compete amongst the top Pinot Noirs of the world.

Bodegas Chacra, ‘Treinta y Dos’, Patagonia, Argentina.

Piero Incisa Della Rocchetta, the grandson of Marchese Mario Incisa Della Rocchetta, who created the iconic ‘Sassicaia,’ started this winery in 2004 shortly after blind tasting a Pinot Noir from Rio Negro. He named the winery ‘Chacra,’ inspired by the squared farms, divided equally by canals.

@Bodegas Chacra, ‘Treinta y Dos’.

The winery has three of the oldest vineyards of Pinot Noir. A single-vineyard wine, ‘Treinta y Dos’ is the flagship wine which is made using the grapes from vines planted back in 1932. The vineyard practices organic and biodynamic farming and has a soil composition of clay, sand, and pebbles. The grapes are hand-harvested and fermented naturally. Later the juice is aged for 19 months in concrete tanks and some in used French oak barrels. The wine is also bottled unfiltered. The winery also has plantations which are from 1955 and 1967. 

Domaine Nico, Soeur et Freres, ‘Le Paradise’, Uco Valley, Argentina.

From the legendary Catena family, Laura Catena, who is the managing director of Catena Zapata, a Harvard University graduate, has been in love with Pinot Noir ever since her first visit to France. Domaine Nico is named after Laura’s daughter, Nicola. Since 1992, Laura started planting Pinot noir clones at extremely high elevation in different parcels located from Villa Bastais to Gualtallary in alluvial limestone soil. 

@Domaine Nico, Soeur et Freres, ‘Le Paradise’.

The Domaine produces five labels under its name: Grand Mère (Grandmother), Grand Père (Grandfather), Histoire D’A, La Savante (The Scholar), and Le Paradis. ‘Le Paradis’ is the newest vineyard planted at an elevation of 4,921 feet about the sea level, which is barely 2 acres and 2016 being the first vintage. The grapes are whole-cluster fermented in 600 litres oak fermenters, in temperature-controlled environment at 22°C. Later the wines are aged in French oak barrels. The wine is averagely priced at US$284. (According to www.winesearcher.com which make it the most expensive Pinot Noir from Argentina).

Zorzal, ‘Porfiado’, Tupungato, Mendoza, Argentina.

This particular wine label is a blend of multiple harvests, i.e. (2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012) making it a multi-vintage wine with the grapes harvested from a single vineyard which is about 30 years old and every year the new wine is added to the final wine from the previous years to create more complexity, structure, elegance, and smoothness. 

@Zorzal, ‘Porfiado’.

The wine is pressed in whole bunches, and before the fermentation, the sediments are separated from the juice. The fermentation takes place using cultured yeast in stainless steel at low temperatures. No malolactic fermentation takes place for this wine. The wine is filtered and then bottled. 

Argentina is not shy in showcasing its diversity in both style and taste when it comes to Pinot Noir. It is just the beginning as a lot more iconic Pinot Noir's are yet to be made, which are not only going to speak the language of terroir as Burgundian Pinot Noir's do, but also express the labour of love and knowledge which the vignerons add to showcase it in our glass.

Article by Ranjit Shirke, Certified Sommelier.