Argentina Flashcards
2023 Argentina harvest
Smallest Argentinian harvest since 1960, down 23% from the year before
* devastating late spring frost
* hottest summer in a century
* irrigation water shortage
Most planted Argentinian grapes
1 Malbec
#2 Cereza
#3 Bonarda
#4 Cab Sauv
#5 Criolla Grande
Cereza is a crossing of?
Criolla Chica (Listan Prieto) x Moscatel de Alejandria
Listan Prieto - Argentina name
Criolla Chica
Bonarda - origins/synonyms
Douce Noire/Corbeau, once widely planted in Savoie
Torrontés - types, most planted, crossings
- Torrontés Riojano (moscatel x criolla chica)
- Torrontés Sanjuanino (moscatel x criolla chica)
- Torrontés Mendocino (moscatel x unknown)
*Riojano is the best and the most planted (with about 7650ha. Torrontés Sanjuanino is 2nd with 1620ha)
Argentina vine training + irrigation
- Modern: VSP with drip irrigation
- Old: parral (pergola) with flood irrigation
52% trained on pergola systems, especially Criolla grapes;
47% is VSP-trained (espaldera); 1%
is a mishmash of other training methods.
Main viticultural threats in Argentina (4)
- Esca
- frost, hail, Zonda
- nematodes
- mostly… lack of irrigation water
3 Argentina GI’s created on basis of geography, climate, etc
- Paraje Altamira GI (alluvial cone of Rio Tunuyan)
- Pampa El Cepillo GI (basically the plains below Paraje Altamira)
- Cordon El Cepillo GI (22; the ridge of the foothills)
-
San Pablo GI (climate - cool, humid & 20in/rain; proximity to Portillo Ridge)
Pampa El Cepillo GI
[Tapiz, Salentein, Zuccardi] - Los Chacayes GI: ‘17, geographical, not political (need to verify this)
[Lurton Bros]
Quebrada de Humahuaca GI
Jujuy (northernmost GI)
* Argentina’s highest vineyards.. up to 3329
* 42ha.. isn’t that important
Salta subregions
Cafayete
Molinos
Cachi
San Carlos
Salta’s subregions - most planted to least
- Cafayete - 2683ha
- San Carlos - 657m
- Molinos - 130ha
- Cachi - 91ha
[N-S: Cachi, Molinos, San Carlos, Cafayete]
Salta’s important river
Rio Salado
Molinos
Subregion of Salta; 130ha
* gravel, sand, volcanic soils
* Altura Maxima Malbec / Colomé @ 3111M
Finca Altura Maxima
Colomé’s star vineyard in Molinos in the Salta. It sits at 3111M
Labels under the Valles Calchaquies GI
Diurnal Shift
- main factors
- Clouds: blanket effect. Block sunlight to moderate daytime temps, traps heat to moderate nighttime temps
- Humidity: water vapor in air absorbs heat. Humid places trapped warmth moderates day/nighttime temps
- Elevation: thinner air is less efficient at holding heat. Cools quickly at night
- Proximity to water: water heats/cools more slowly than land. smaller shifts
- Vegetation: plants/trees release moisture and impede rapid heat loss from ground at night
Frost factors
Cool climates: highest risk in spring with tender buds, young shoots
High diurnal shift areas: clear calm nights let heat radiate quickly from ground
Areas near water: water moderates day temps but doesn’t release enough heat at night to counterbalance rapid radiation cooling that leads to frost
Valley floors: cold air is denser; settles
Clear skies, lack of wind
UV ray + elevation relationship
- Methods to protect grapes
UV rays increase 4% per 100M. Grapes need more “sunscreen”
* N-S orientation to minimize sun
* train shoots vertically
* create a more diffused canopy with trellising system
* shade cloth
* Kaolin clay
Kaolin clay
natural mineral sunscreen for grape bunches
Cafayete - latitude, elevation, climate, grapes
26ºS; 1700 - 2000M
* Arid continental / 7.3in rain
* largest/southernmost Salta subregion
* poor rocky soils with high sand
* lots of old vines.. 1/3rd of vineyard is 100+
Torrontes #1, Malbec, Cab Sauv
Top Cafayete producers
Amalaya
Bodegas Etchart
El Esteco
Piatelli
El Porvenir de Cafayete
Valles Calchaquíes
- provinces/dept GIs
4200ha total
PROVINCES:
* Salta (Cafayete, Molinos, San Carlos, Cachi)
* Tucuman (Amaicha del Valle, Colalao del Valle)
* Catamarca (Santa Maria)
Oldest productive vines in Arg - Etcher’s 1862 Torrontes vyd
GI subregions of Catamarca (5)
Tinogasta
Poman
Belen
Santa Maria
Catamarca (dept GI within region GI)
[hot, semi-arid. 7in rain/yr. Abaucan River, Andes Mountain]
Tinogasta
- location
- mountain
- river
- grapes
most planted GI subregion of Catamarca Valleys; holds 1480 of 1721ha
* 1100 - 2050
* Fiambala Mountain Range, Abaucan River
* Cereza, Torrontes, Syrah
Cuyo subregions - meaning of name?
- Mendoza (149k ha)
- San Juan (31,960 ha)
- La Rioja (6539ha)
(San Luis - 107ha, if we count it) - San Luis (est 2019)
[N-S: La Rioja, San Juan, Mendoza, San Luis (east)]
95% of Argentina’s vineyard area
Cuyo = “land of sand” in native Huarpe
Argentina word for irrigation channel
Acequias
La Rioja Argentina - most planted grapes
1 Torrontes Riojano
#2 Malbec
#3 Cab Sauv
La Rioja (Argentina) 3 most important sub-GI’s
Chilecito (5219ha)
Felipe Varela (532ha)
Famantina (359ha)
*90% of production
[NE of Mendoza - recognized for cool climate whites]
La Rioja Argentina - mountains
Famatina + Sierra de Velasco Ranges
* Chilecito lies in between them w 5219 of 6539ha
* 770 - 1850M; Deep sandy alluvial soils (rockier at altitude, fertile in lower valleys
Zonda
- type
- benefits
- timing
- regions w heaviest impact
Foehn wind: comes from polar maritime air; warms over the crest of its descent
* hot and dry in lower lands but catalyst of snow precipitation in higher elevations (critical for irrigation)
* May to Nov; typically 12pm to 6pm
Most heavily impacts La Rioja, San Juan, N Mendoza
San Juan
- where
- climate threats
- sub-GI’s (5)
Cuyo; 31.5ºS. #2 region for production
17% of Argentine vineyard area
* hail; Zonda is particularly fierce here
* potassium = high pH/alkaline soils. Sandy-loam with patches of limestone.
* Malbec, Syrah, Torrontes
Basically everything here is an IG: Valle de Tullum, Calingasta, Sarmiento, Pedernal, Zonda
Bodegas Callia, Finca las Moras, Graffigna, Pyros
San Juan (important) subregions (5)
Tulum (largest)
Ullum (table grapes)
Zonda (testament to the wind in San Juan)
Pedernal (grand cru)
Calingasta (old vine Criolla, Bonarda)
Pedernal GI
Grand Cru of San Juan
“flint”
* 1150 - 1500M
* Limestone rich soils + cooler temps (Gualtallary-ish)
Nothing in 1992, 800ha now. Grape prices 2x other regions in San Juan.
Las Heras, Lavalle
Northern Mendoza
Maipú
- District GI (4)
Mendoza; 11,120ha
Lunlunta GI
Las Barrancas GI
El Paraiso GI
Russell GI
Flatter, softer, siltier soil, generally warmer bc lower altitude - an easy and productive region to cultivate
* key to the foundation of the industry but vineyards now on decline
Lunlunta GI
Maipú, Mendoza
Mendoza River
“rolling stone” in native
* 880 - 930M
Las Barrancas GI
Maipú, Mendoza
Mendoza River
* 680 - 840M; warm, low altitude
Agrelo
Lujan de Cuyo
* 930 - 1100M
* sandy clay loam soils (rockier in Alto Agrelo)
* Malbec is over 1/2 plantings
South of Mendoza River, not directly on it tho
Lujan de Cuyo districts
Ugarteche
Perdriel
Carodilla, Chacras de Coria, El Carrizal, Mayor Drummond
GIs:
Agrelo, las Compuertas, Vistalba
Viticultural hazards in Lujan de Cuyo?
- water availability
- destructive Zonda winds
- spring frost
- hailstorms
Argentina’s 1st DOC
Lujan de Cuyo, approved in 1989
* political boundary GI’s were created from the start; additional GI’s and DOCs are at grower/region expense
Los Cerrillos Hills
Boundary between….
Lujan de Cuyo (Ugarteche)
Uco Valley
Uco Valley
- climate
- diurnal range
- rainfall
Arid continental
- ~30º diurnal shift in the summer
- 7 - 11in
Lujan de Cuyo GI district GIs (3)
Agrelo IG
Las Compuertas IG
Vistalba IG
Argentina’s DOC
San Rafael
Lujan de Cuyo
Requirements for wines applying the Lujan de Cuyo DOC?
- must come from authorized vineyards
- vines 10+ years old
- min. 5000 vines/ha
- wines age at least 2 years before sale including 1 in barrel
Lujan de Cuyo DOC aging requirement
1 year in barrel, 2 years total before sale
3 founding wineries of Lujan de Cuyo DOC
Chandon
Lagarde
Nieto Sentenir
Luigi Bosca
Norton
Otero Ramos
(Mendel, Brescia, Caesarean, Vistalba, Trivento joined later)
Perdriel
*not a GI
Lujan de Cuyo; 910 - 980M
Mendoza River
* alluvial soils w river gravels, clay, sandy silt
* south side of Mendoza River = cooler than the other subs
Las Compuertas GI
Lujan de Cuyo; 950 - 1080M
Mendoza River
* “floodgates” - closest to the mountains, closest to the acequias
* housing pressure = expensive land
Chandon in Argentina
Lujan de Cuyo, 1959
* planted 1st vines in Gualtallary, 1992
Achaval Ferrer
Lujan de Cuyo (based); Stoli group
Top wines:
1. Finca Altamira (La Consulta GI/Paraje Altamira) * 1999 vintage kicked off this GI’s ascension
2. Finca Bella Vista(Lujan de Cuyo)
3. Finca Mirador (Mendoza)
Catena Zapata
- winery location, top vineyards/wines
Lujan du Cuyo-based; significant sourcing from Uco Valley
* Adrianna Vineyard (Alto Gualtallary): Whites Bones, Whites Stones, Fortuna Terrae Malbec
Cheval des Andes
Lujan de Cuyo (based) + Paraje Altamira
* Cheval Blanc x Terrazas de los Andes
* 1 wine - Malbec, Cab Sauv, Petit Verdot from Las Compuertas (Lujan) & La Consulta (Uco)
Susana Balbo Wines
Dominio del Plato
“Queen of Torrontes”
Lujan de Cuyo, est 2000
Terrazas de los Andes
- ownership
- based in?
Chandon Argentina
LVMH, est 1996
Based in Perdriel, Lujan de Cuyo
Varietal wines only.
Viña Cobos
Perdriel, Lujan de Cuyo
Paul Hobbs,1st Cobos vintage 1999
Uco Valley departments + district GIs
- San Carlos GI (661ha)
[Paraje Altamira, Pampa El Cepillo, Cordon El Cepillo, La Consulta] - Tupungato GI (639ha)
[El Peral] - Tunuyan GI (485ha)
[Los Chacayes, Vista Flores, San Pablo]
Uco Valley viticultural hazards
- Frost
- Hail
- Zonda
Quite exposed - these things have easier access
Gualtallary
- location
- river
- elevation
- soils
Tupungato, Uco Valley; no GI, trademark dispute
* 1080 - 1600M
* River Tunas crosses the south
SOILS:
- Alto: limestone
- Central/Lower: sandier as elevation decreases
Varies enormously in soils/micoclimates but…
SPECIAL BC: cool climate + limestone in the upper reaches
Important Gualtallary wines
- Catena Zapata: White Bones, White Stones, Fortuna Terrae
(Adrianna Vineyard) - Ben Marco Expresivo
- Gran Enemigo Gualtallary
Monasterio
- terrain/elevation
- soils
- wines
Alto Gualtallary
- TERRAIN: ~1300 - 1500M
* CLIMATE: arid continental like the rest of Mendoza. Cool.. Winkler 1,2 vs 3 lower down
* SOILS: “Indian Cement” - sands, clay, gravel, chalk - calcium carbonate; up to 40% active limestone (unique for Argentina)
WINES
- Catena’s Adrianna Vineyard (Whites Bones, Stones Fortuna Terrae)
- Zuccardi Aluvional Gualtallary/ Poligonos Gualtallary
Indian Cement
soil type key to Gualtallary’s Monasterio area
Sand, clay, gravels, chalk
High proportion of active limestone
Uco Valley rivers
- Tupungato on north bank
Tunas River
Tunuyan sits between the two
Tunuyan River
*San Carlos on south bank
Mendoza most planted grapes
1 Malbec: 35,300 ha (Lujan de Cuyo has the most)
#2 Bonarda: 15,680 ha
#3 Cabernet Sauvignon: 11,455 ha
#4 Syrah: 8.684 ha
#5 Pedro Giménez: 8,219 ha (most planted white)
#6 Tempranillo: 5,718 ha
Tunuyan department GIs
- Los Chacayes GI
- San Pablo GI
- Vista Flores GI
San Carlos GI (4)
- Paraje Altamira
- Pampa El Cepillo GI
- La Consulta GI
- Cordon el Cepillo GI (‘22)
Rivadavia IG, Junín IG, San Martín IG, Santa Rosa IG, La Paz IG - where are they?
Eastern Mendoza
Mendoza general climate
Arid continental
avg 8.8in/year for city of Mendoza
2872 sunshine hours/year
Important rivers in the Mendoza GI?
Diamente, Atuel River run through the south
Tunas and Tunuyan Rivers
Mendoza River
river between San Pablo GI & Gualtallary?
Rio Tunas
Paraje Altamira GI
“Grand Cru” of San Carlos, Uco Valley; 2800ha planted at 900-1200M. Argentina’s 1st terroir based GI.
* south bank of Rio Tunuyan
* SPECIAL BC: Limestone soils + cool climate
Western sector = highest concentration of limestone, higher elevations. East has smaller pebbles, more sand, flatter topography
Argentina’s 1st terroir-based GI? Basis of the boundaries?
Paraje Altamira GI (2013)
Boundaries based on an alluvial cone of the River Tunuyan
Piedra Infinita
Zuccardi; “Infinite stones”
Paraje Altamira GI (San Carlos, Uco Valley)
Mendoza River Departments (3) + District GIs (5)
DEPTS: Lujan de Cuyo, Maipu, E Mendoza
North Bank:
- Los Compuertas, Vistalba, Lunlunta (Lujan de Cuyo)
- El Paraiso (Maipu)
South Bank:
- Las Barrancas (Maipu)
(E Mendoza = Junin, San Martin depts)
(Non-GI but important.. Perdriel)
District GI along the Tunuyan River
Tunuyan/San Carlos:
Vista Flores GI
La Consulta GI
Paraje Altamira GI
(Rivadavia/Santa Rosa dept GIs in E Mendoza)
What are the pros and cons of flood irrigation? How frequently is this generally done?
Pros: Flood irrigation emulates a true rainy season by saturating the ground, frequency can be increased or decreased to produce a specific crop level.
Cons: A large portion (5-25%) of irrigation water can be lost to evaporation, huge amounts of water are needed, maintaining the channels can be labor intensive and expensive
Clos de los Siete
Uco Valley
Winemaker: Michel Rolland
Cuvelier los Andes
Bodega Rolland
Bodega DiamAndes
Monteviejo
*all Bordeaux families
Malbec’s parents
Prunelard vs. Madeleine Noir des Charentes
Cool, wet Argentinian vintages since 2015
2015 :cool and wet
2016: VERY cool, very very wet
2021 - not great - cool year
2022 - bad for yields, cool and ok quality
Best Argentina vintages since 2015
2017 - 2019: very good to excellent
2018: highest yields
2019 was cool, very balanced.
2020 was very good
What are the 2 appellations of South Mendoza?
General Alvear GI
San Rafael DOC
Paraje Altamira wines
- Zuccardi’s Piedra Infinita Supercal
- Altos Las Hormigas Appellation Paraje Altamira
- Susana Balbo Signature Barrel Fermented Torrontes
Pampa El Cepillo GI
San Carlos GI, Uco Valley
avg ~1000M
* terroir based GI - based on part of the alluvial cone of the River Tunuyan
* cool cool climate
La Consulta
San Carlos, Uco Valley
* part of Paraje Altamira lies within
* clay rocks sand with some limestone patches
San Rafael/General Alvear
- rivers/irrigation sources
- producers
- climate
South Mendoza
* Rio Diamente, Rio Atuel (longest river in Mendoza)
* DOC defined by microclimate. Milder temps, less winds & frost risk
San Rafael = DOC; Bianchi is the big winery here. Mumm
Patagonia provinces (4)
Neuquen (1764ha)
Rio Negro (1526ha)
La Pampa (278ha)
Chubut (87ha)
Rio Negro GI
- 3 subregions
- most planted grapes
1 malbec, #2 Merlot, #3 Pinot Noir
Patagonia; 1107ha
Subregions:
- General Roca (Upper Valley; 180 - 265M)
- Avallenada (Middle Valley)
- Alfonso Elsina
Rio Negro GI soils
Alluvial soils with clay, sandy loam & river gravels
(Mendoza and Rio Negro both share alluvial soil types, but Rio Negro has more clay and calcareous soils)
Neuquén
- department IGs
- soils
- grapes
1 Malbec, #2 Cab Sauv, #3 Merlot
Patagonia
Dept GI: Confluencia, Añelo
* semi-arid, continental (7in rain)
* alluvial clay sandy loam
* 270 - 420M
What are Neuquén GI’s 2 major rivers?
Limay River, Neuquén River
Añelo and Confluencia are located within what GI?
Neuquén GI
Easternmost Argentina GI
Chapadmalal GI
Where are the Chapalmadal, Villa Ventana, and Balcarce IG’s?
Buenos Aires
(Atlantic Region)
La Pampa
Central Argentina
* upper valley of the Rio Colorado
* Bodega del Desierto
* continental, arid
Otronia
The world’s most southerly (?) vineyard, planted at 45º50’S - Billionaire Alejandro Bulgheroni’s project. Named for the lake that saves it from frost. Located in the Sarmiento GI.
Bodega Chacra
Rio Negro, Patagonia
Piero Incisa della Rocchetta (Sassicaia)
* Mainque Chard made with Roulot
Bodega Mainque is the Chardonnay counterpart, a separate label
Patagonian wineries
- Bodega Chacra (Rio Negro)
- Noemia (Rio Negro)
- Otronia
- Bodega del Fin del Mundo
Remember: 7in rain/yr; max 30% humidity. Very dry. Frost risk. Large diurnal shift.
Argentina’s 1st recorded vineyard
Santiago del Estero, 1556
Argentina wine law tiers
EXAMPLE:
1. Cuyo IG = Region
(Cuyo & Patagonia are the only 2 big ones with GI status)
2. Mendoza IG, Uco Valley GI etc = subregion
3. Tunuyan, Tupungato, San Carlos are all department GIs
4. Paraje Altamira, El Cepillo etc are district GI
Chile/Argentina “Maipu” name relationship
Battle of Maipu - Chilean battle of Independence, 1818. Argentine forces fought with Chilean.
* possible that they both named regions for this shared effort, but not confirmed
Tullum, Ullum, Zonda, Calingasta
Department IGs in San Juan (Cuyo)
Barreal, Pedernal
District GI’s in San Juan (Cuyo)
Most planted department GI of Catamarca?
Tinogasta
Distrito Medrano IG
Junin, Rivadavia
