Winemaker Notes
Nicolás Catena Zapata has an intense dark violet color with blue-black tones. A complex wine with delicate aromas of black cherry and licorice, it is enlivened by minerals, violet, spice, and herbs. The palate is sharply delineated and impressively concentrated, with a serious backbone supporting its very fresh currant and mineral flavors.
Blend: 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Malbec, 8% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
The 2016 vintage is a classic example, a superb blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with 31% Malbec and 8% Cabernet Franc that’s still in its infancy. Subdued aromas of cassis, black cherries and nuanced herbaceous and tobacco notes. A lovely fluid entrance builds on concentration and complexity. Malbec’s seductive juiciness joins a vertical Cabernet structure, tannins and integrated oak, with a long, lingering finish. A wine to wait for.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Nicolás Catena Zapata has not been released, and they are going to sell the 2017 before it. This is the one wine, together with the Adrianna Vineyard Mundus Bacillus Terrae Malbec, that is sold through the négoce in Bordeaux for Europe and Asia. This is backward, serious and austere, with terrific balance and great length. This is a blend of 61% Cabernet Sauvignon from Gualtallary and 31% Malbec from Nicasia. There is also some 8% Cabernet Franc that seems to add a touch, and in 2016, it didn't need irrigation because there was enough rain. This seems to follow the style of the 2013, a little tight, perhaps because of the Cabernets. This is nuanced and complex, with very good integration of the varieties and the oak, fruit, acidity and mineral texture. One of the best vintages for this bottling.?
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Wine & Spirits
This is a blend of 61 percent cabernet sauvignon with 31 percent malbec and the remainder cabernet franc. It grows in three vineyards in Argelo, Gualtallary and Paraje Altamira ranging from 3,000 feet of elevation to 4,790. In the cool 2016 vintage, with yields down 40 to 50 percent of normal, this wine has a calm gravity, layering cassis, mint and tobacco aromas that gently pull you in. Faint dark-chocolate tannins frame the lightly spiced pale cherry fruit. It would be well-suited to any beef dish, but the wine is complex enough to be a meal on its own. Find someone who wants to sit with you and savor it for hours, appreciating each new contour and expression of the Andes.
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James Suckling
This a rich and flavorful red, showing blackcurrants and tobacco. Full-bodied, soft and fruity with bright and spicy, oyster-shell and fresh-herb character. Serious cabernet blend.
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 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.
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.