Winemaker Notes
The nose lively citrus notes and white stone fruit. The palate is a voluptuous wine with intense flavors of pear, apple and subtle floral and mineral hints. The finish is long and clean with a strong mineral side.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
What an exotic, perfumed yet elegant nose here full of thyme, local herbs, green papaya, ginger and green curry. Lemon grass and lime zest. So fresh and elegant on the palate with a chalky texture to the center-palate. Really transparent, subtle, quiet and long. A unique chardonnay from a cool and elegant vintage, but intense and idiosyncratic. Unique to the landscape. Drink now or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 White Bones Chardonnay was harvested at two different points of ripeness and then blended into the final wine, which is subtler than the explosive 2020 I tasted next to it but with the same palette of aromas—thyme, rosemary, lavender, rockrose, white flowers, citrus, pine needles, incense, curry and spices—and the palate is seamless, mineral and with a chalky texture. It's brilliant and expresses the variety, vintage and soil perfectly, but today I give the edge to the 2020, which I think transcends the vintage.
Rating: 98+
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Vinous
The 2021 Chardonnay Adrianna Vineyard White Bones hails from Gualtallary, Uco Valley. It was aged for up to 16 months in used French barrels. An alluring yellow hue with a greenish sheen. The cool year imparted a distinctive, complex character featuring herbal aromas enriched by hop, sage, and thyme alongside hints of curry and acacia over a delicate layer of rose before late-developing pear and green apple notes. The palate has a lean, focused character, with a chalky texture and electric, saline energy enhancing the refreshing mouthfeel. A truly outstanding mountain Chardonnay.
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Wine Spectator
Distinctive and gorgeously layered, with intense savory aromas of pineapple sage, ginger and chive flower that join the vibrant palate, bursting with tangelo and white peach flavors. Ends on a clean and refreshing note, with wet stone details, echoing back to the persistent core flavors.
Bodega Catena Zapata is one of Argentina's high-altitude Malbec pioneers. The Catena family began making wine in Mendoza in 1902. Nicolas Catena, third generation family vintner, was one of the first to see the potential of Mendoza's mountain vineyards for producing high quality Malbec. In 1994, he became the first Argentine to export a world-class bottling of Malbec under the Catena label. Nicolas is joined by his daughter, Dr. Laura Catena, in their relentless pursuit of world-class quality from the family's high-altitude vineyards. Laura has done extensive work in introducing Malbec and other varietal plant selections, soil and climate analysis, and sustainable practices throughout Mendoza. Head winemaker, Alejandro Vigil, has been at Catena Zapata since 2002 and works with Laura and Nicolas to make wines that express the family's vineyards and palate.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
By far the largest and best-known winemaking province in Argentina, Mendoza is responsible for over 70% of the country’s enological output. Set in the eastern foothills of the Andes Mountains, the climate is dry and continental, presenting relatively few challenges for viticulturists during the growing season. Mendoza, divided into several distinctive sub-regions, including Luján de Cuyo and the Uco Valley, is the source of some of the country’s finest wines.
For many wine lovers, Mendoza is practically synonymous with Malbec. Originally a Bordelaise variety brought to Argentina by the French in the mid-1800s, here it found success and renown that it never knew in its homeland where a finicky climate gives mixed results. Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot and Pinot Noir are all widely planted here as well (and sometimes even blended with each other or Malbec). Mendoza's main white varieties include Chardonnay, Torrontés, Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon.