Rutini Apartado 2002
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Robert
Parker
Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
A blend of 30% Merlot, 30% Malbec, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Syrah, this well-structured wine has a complex nose of red fruits, plums and cherries. Notes of tobacco and chocolate show through as well. On the palate there are fruit flavors of blackberries, blue berries and cherries along with hints of spice. Soft sweet tannins are present on the lingering silky finish.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Unquestionably the finest wine I’ve tasted from Felipe Rutini over the years, the 2002 Apartado is a blend of 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Malbec, 20% Merlot, and 20% Syrah. Its intense nose displays tar, spices, and loads of black fruits. Medium to full-bodied, it exhibits outstanding depth, concentration, and balance. Highly expressive and pure, this wine boasts a flavor profile that bursts with red cherries, blackberries, plums, and cassis. Its tannin is ripe, suave, and provides excellent structure without being intrusive. Projected maturity: 2007-2016.
Other Vintages
1999-
Wine
Spectator
From the start, Felipe Rutini was guided by the motto “labor and perseverance”. This attitude shaped the development of his wines, which became synonymous with superlative quality. In 1925 the winery began to plant vines in the Uco Valley. From those first pioneering vines, the region continued to expand its plantings and become one of the primary wine-producing areas in Mendoza.
In the 1990s, the original Bodega La Rural facilities in Coquimbito were completely renovated, incorporating cutting-edge technology into the nineteenth-century structure. Today that property houses the Bodega La Rural Wine Museum, where visitors can learn about Felipe Rutini’s first forays into wine production and witness the evolution of traditional techniques and machinery. In keeping with its founder’s drive for excellence, in 2008 construction began on a new Rutini Wines facility in Tupungato, within the Uco Valley. This is where Rutini’s top level wines, such as, Apartado, Colección Rutini, Encuentro, and Trumpeter are currently produced.
The Uco Valley vineyards comprise more than 400 hectares at an altitude of between 1,050 and 1,200 meters above sea level. An additional 120 hectares of fields that are currently being planted with vines will expand the winery’s possibilities for producing unique wines that are carefully tended to and nurtured from the very beginning.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
With vineyards tretching along the eastern side of the Andes Mountains from Patagonia in the south to Salta in the north, Argentina is one of the world’s largest and most dynamic wine producing countries—and most important in South America.
Since the late 20th century vineyard investments, improved winery technology and a commitment to innovation have all contributed to the country’s burgeoning image as a producer of great wines at all price points. The climate here is diverse but generally continental and agreeable, with hot, dry summers and cold snowy winters—a positive, as snow melt from the Andes Mountains is used heavily to irrigate vineyards. Grapes very rarely have any difficulty achieving full ripeness.
Argentina’s famous Mendoza region, responsible for more than 70% of Argentina’s wine production, is further divided into several sub-regions, with Luján de Cuyo and the Uco Valley most noteworthy. Red wines dominate here, especially Malbec, the country’s star variety, while Chardonnay is the most successful white.
The province of San Juan is best known for blends of Bonarda and Syrah. Torrontés is a specialty of the La Rioja and Salta regions, the latter of which is also responsible for excellent Malbecs grown at very high elevation.