Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I nearly fell off my chair when I first put my nose in the glass of the 2017 Cincuenta y Cinco. I cannot remember such balance and elegance in a wine from Chacra before. It's floral, mineral and super tasty, with an almost salty finish—refined and detailed like no other Pinot Noir from Argentina. It's only 12.8% alcohol and retains very good acidity. Of course, it comes from a vineyard planted in 1955 ("cincuenta y cinco" means "fifty five" in Spanish) that is worked organically and biodynamically. It fermented with full clusters and indigenous yeasts in concrete vats and was left to infuse with the grapes' aromas and flavors. Thirty percent of the wine was kept unoaked, while the rest matured in second and third use French barrels with the lees. This is truly unbelievable. Even Piero Incisa della Rocchetta doesn't understand how they managed to get a wine with such low alcohol and high energy and freshness in a vintage like 2017. 20,829 bottles and 150 magnums were filled in December 2017.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
One of the most southerly regions on the globe for fine wine production, Patagonia has experienced extraordinary vineyard expansion since the early 2000s.
Patagonia vineyards occupy the lower foothills of the Andes at 1,000 to 1,600 feet. Here cold air drops at night from incredibly steep elevations—the Andes reach well over 15,000 feet in this zone—a phenomenon that produces drastic diurnal shifts. Cold nights contrasted with hot summer days produce grapes with striking color, full ripeness, great finesse and aromatic intensity.
Favored for its luxury brands, the Patagonia wine growing region of Argentina focuses on a diverse array of international varieties: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillón and Viognier among the white grapes, and Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon for reds.