Nicolas Catena Zapata - Mendoza 2021

Nicolas Catena Zapata: a family story

The Catena family has cultivated Mendoza’s vineyards for over a century, beginning with Nicolás Catena in 1902. Recognized by Robert Parker in 2005 as the leading visionary of Argentine wine, Catena Zapata became the only South American estate in his book "The World's 100 Greatest Wine Estates." Nicolás and his daughter, Dr. Laura Catena, have since strived to elevate Argentine wine. The winery’s Nicolás Catena Zapata cuvée, launched in 1997, was the first luxury wine from Argentina to gain international acclaim, blending Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon from pre-phylloxera vines, echoing historic Bordeaux blends.

To celebrate the estate’s legacy, highlighting ungrafted massale selections and pre-phylloxeric blends, while honoring Nicolás Catena’s visionary contributions to Argentine winemaking since 1902, Nicolás Catena Zapata has a new label starting with the 2021 vintage.

The 2021 vintage:

Discover the 2021 Vintage on video: https://youtu.be/09vQB9oc--M

2021 had some similarities to 2016 with its cool climate and slightly increased rainfall. However, it was less extreme than 2016, and in 2021, unlike 2016, the Cabernet Sauvignon fermentations exhibited beautiful fresh fruit, optimal acidity, and relatively low alcohol. This allowed for longer macerations, resulting in wines of elegance, length, texture, and perfect balance. It was a great year for Cabernet Sauvignon in the high-altitude regions of Mendoza.

matthewjukes.com

byMatthew Jukesthe9/18/2024

I find this wine, more often than not, just too imposing, but this 2021 is spectacular. It is super-impactful, with perfect interplay between the mighty Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, and Cabernet Franc ingredients. What I admire most is that the oak sits behind the fruit, making this incredibly indulgent but stunningly pure and refined. It will age for a decade with ease and the cruise for another, but I suggest holding off for at least five before popping a cork.

The Drink Business

byColin Haythe8/31/2024

(Mendoza; 46% Cabernet Sauvignon; 44% Malbec; 10% Cabernet Franc; 13.5% alcohol). Lithe and limpid, very fluid and quite crystalline at first, but with chewy fine-grained but grippy tannins more evident as this unfurls over the palate. As that implies, this becomes more focussed and even tight and linear after a more sinuous and crystalline opening. Oxygen seems to reveal the structure more. Pixilated by the tannins. Another vin de garde, less accessible perhaps at this stage than previous vintages but imposing and impressive. Puissant.

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

byJane Ansonthe6/26/2024

A cool vintage, although not as much as 2016, with precision and nuance, floral aromatics, raspberry leaf, black cherry and brambled hedgerow fruit, with tobacco and chamomile flowers, smoky and intense. This vintage sees a new label for the first time since this wine was first released back in 1997, pointing to what makes it so different from many Argentinian Cab-Malbec blends (ungrafted pre-phylloxera vines, whole cluster vinification, massal selection programme leading to the diversity of their DNA). 50% new oak for ageing. Alejandro Vigil winemaker. Tasted twice.

Jamessuckling.com

byJames Sucklingthe5/1/2024

Sweet tobacco, cigar box, berries and minerals. It gets a little zesty and citrusy on the nose. Really refined and juicy on the palate with lot of fine tannins. Silky, fluid and linear with a very elegant, soft-spoken finish. 46% cabernet sauvignon from Adrianna vineyard and 44% malbec and 10% cabernet franc from Nicasia vineyard. Really refined, long and Bordelais. This is already drinking really well, but it will hold like this for a long time.

Wine Advocate

byLuis Gutierrezthe8/31/2023

The 2021 Nicolás Catena Zapata was produced with a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Cabernet Franc and 25% Malbec. It comes from Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon massal selections of ungrafted vines from Nicasia in Altamira and Adrianna in Tupungato and Cabernet Franc from Agrelo. It fermented in small oak barrels, concrete and stainless steel tanks and matured in 2,000-liter oak foudres for 18 months. It's a powerful but fresh red with 13.7% alcohol and mellow acidity, perhaps because the Cabernet Sauvignon was picked earlier (and with lower yields) and they discarded the clay soils and went more for stony plots. The wine feels more streamlined and elegant. 2021 is a cool and very good year, following the path of the 2019, and the wine shows the classical herbal and spicy character of the Bordeaux varieties with pungent notes of black peppercorns and is spicier because of the high Cabernet Franc content.

The Wine Independent

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe8/21/2023

A blend of 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Cabernet Franc, and 21% Malbec, the 2020 Nicolas Catena Zapata is deep garnet-purple in color. It rolls out with vibrant notes of redcurrant jelly, cassis, and baked plums, leading to hints of crushed rocks, wild sage, and fragrant soil. The medium-bodied palate is refreshing, finely crafted, and elegantly styled, with vibrant black fruit and savory layers and a fine-grained texture, finishing with a real skip in its step.

Information:	Details:
Couleur	Rouge
Cépages	Cabernet Sauvignon 46 % Malbec 44 % Cabernet Franc 10 %
Appellation	Mendoza
Millesime	2021
Contenance	Double Magnum (3 l)

Information:

Details:

Couleur

Rouge

Cépages

Cabernet Sauvignon 46 %
Malbec 44 %
Cabernet Franc 10 %

Appellation

Mendoza

Millesime

2021

Contenance

Double Magnum (3 l)

Un repas	Autour du repas
Un cadeau	Faire une découverte !

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Nicolas Catena Zapata - Mendoza 2021

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