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Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino 2012 750ml

size
750ml
country
Argentina
region
Cuyo
appellation
Mendoza
subappellation
Gualtallary
JS
98
WA
94
Additional vintages
JS
98
Rated 98 by James Suckling
Very dense and powerful with a tight palate of blue fruit and raspberry undertones. Salty with wonderful length and intensity. A blend of malbec from Nicasia Vineyard in Altamira and Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary. Drink in 2022 but so great now. (Suckling) ... More details
Image of bottle
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Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino 2012 750ml

SKU 884130
Case Only Purchase
Long-term Pre-Arrival
$615.48
/case
$102.58
/750ml bottle
Quantity
min order 6 bottles
* This is a Long-term Pre-arrival item and is available for online ordering only. This item will ship on a future date after a 4-8 months transfer time. For additional details about Pre-arrival Items please visit our FAQ page.
Professional Ratings
JS
98
WA
94
JS
98
Rated 98 by James Suckling
Very dense and powerful with a tight palate of blue fruit and raspberry undertones. Salty with wonderful length and intensity. A blend of malbec from Nicasia Vineyard in Altamira and Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary. Drink in 2022 but so great now. (Suckling)
WA
94
Rated 94 by Wine Advocate
The 2012 Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino is a blend of grapes from Adrianna (Gualtallary) and Nicasia (Altamira) vineyards in the Uco Valley. The nose made me think of meat broth, vegetable concentrate and other umami-laden foods as it's really tasty. There is something earthy too, and the palate is concentrated yet feels light. Balance, harmony, power and freshness. 11,000 bottles were produced in the 2012 vintage.
Winery
The Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino shows a saturated dark violet color with ruby reflections; the nose offers cassis, blueberries and violets, along with a strong suggestion of soil tones. It combines density and sweetness on the one hand, with gripping, lightly saline flavors of mocha, dark berries, spice, and minerals; a palate-staining finish dominated by sweet black and blue fruits.
Product Details
size
750ml
country
Argentina
region
Cuyo
appellation
Mendoza
subappellation
Gualtallary
Additional vintages
Overview
Very dense and powerful with a tight palate of blue fruit and raspberry undertones. Salty with wonderful length and intensity. A blend of malbec from Nicasia Vineyard in Altamira and Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary. Drink in 2022 but so great now. (Suckling)
barrel

Vintage: 2012

2012 has, so far been a positive year for wineries around the world. While it may be a little too early to speak of the wines being made in the northern hemisphere, European and North American wineries have already begun reporting that their harvesting season has been generally very good, and are predicting to continue with the kind of successes they saw in 2011. However, 2012 has been something of a late year for France, due to unpredictable weather throughout the summer, and the grapes were ripening considerably later than they did in 2011 (which was, admittedly, an exceptionally early year). French wineries are claiming, though, that this could well turn out to be advantageous, as the slow ripening will allow the resulting wines to express more flavour and features of the terroir they are grown in. The southern hemisphere has seen ideal climatic conditions in most of the key wine producing countries, and Australia and New Zealand particularly had a superb year, in particular with the Bordeaux varietal grapes that grow there and which love the humidity these countries received plenty of. Also enjoying a fantastic year for weather were wineries across Argentina and Chile, with the Mendoza region claiming that 2012 will be one of their best vintages of the past decade. Similar claims are being made across the Chilean wine regions, where Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon had an especially good year. These two grape varietals also produced characterful wines on the coastal regions of South Africa this year.
green grapes

Varietal: Malbec

The heavy purple bunches of Malbec grapes found growing in many New and Old World countries produce some extremely varied and distinctive wines. Their thick skins have a high tannin content, which means the wines produced from them are generally full-bodied and deep red in color. Single variety Malbec wines tend to be extremely plummy in their flavor, packing a strong punch and making them ideal for matching with spicy foods. However, because of their high malic acid content and their powerful tannins, many wineries use these grapes for blending with more mellow varietals, producing wonderfully complex wines which age beautifully and produce remarkable flavors and aromas. Because of this, Malbec holds the high position of being one of the few grape varietals used in the production of Bordeaux wines, widely recognized as being the finest wines on earth.
barrel

Region: Cuyo

The region of Cuyo has been internationally associated with fine Argentinian wine for several decades, and has a wine history which stretches back centuries to the time of the original Spanish settlers, who sought areas in which to plant imported grape vines for sacramental wine production. The region contains several of Argentina's most renowned and widely appreciated provinces, including the Mendoza, La Rioja, San Juan and San Luis, and the mountainous nature of this arid region provides an ideal environment for vineyard cultivation. As the mighty Desaguadero River snakes its way between the Andes, it deposits plenty of important minerals in the soil, which allow grape varietals closely associated with the Argentinian wine industry – such as Malbec – to grow to a perfect level of ripeness. As such, even in the driest areas of the Cuyo region, flavorful and fruit-forward wines are produced in impressive amounts.
fields

Country: Argentina

In the dry, arid deserts of Argentina, wineries and winemakers are focusing their efforts on producing high quality wines for the world market. By experimenting with both traditional and modern methods and technologies, they have found great success with a wide variety of grapes well suited to the conditions of the country, particularly Malbec, Bonarda and Cabernet Sauvignon. Over the past decade, Argentinian wineries have continued to aim high, and this has led to a range of new wines using grape varietals not typically associated with the country. The cooler regions of Argentina are seeing more vineyards being planted with Cabernet Franc and Pinot Noir varietals, something that is beginning to produce fantastic results, which are at once representative of the country's wines - with all their fruity and bold character - but are also pushing the boundaries of what we expect from a New World country.
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More Details
Winery Catena Zapata
barrel

Vintage: 2012

2012 has, so far been a positive year for wineries around the world. While it may be a little too early to speak of the wines being made in the northern hemisphere, European and North American wineries have already begun reporting that their harvesting season has been generally very good, and are predicting to continue with the kind of successes they saw in 2011. However, 2012 has been something of a late year for France, due to unpredictable weather throughout the summer, and the grapes were ripening considerably later than they did in 2011 (which was, admittedly, an exceptionally early year). French wineries are claiming, though, that this could well turn out to be advantageous, as the slow ripening will allow the resulting wines to express more flavour and features of the terroir they are grown in. The southern hemisphere has seen ideal climatic conditions in most of the key wine producing countries, and Australia and New Zealand particularly had a superb year, in particular with the Bordeaux varietal grapes that grow there and which love the humidity these countries received plenty of. Also enjoying a fantastic year for weather were wineries across Argentina and Chile, with the Mendoza region claiming that 2012 will be one of their best vintages of the past decade. Similar claims are being made across the Chilean wine regions, where Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon had an especially good year. These two grape varietals also produced characterful wines on the coastal regions of South Africa this year.
green grapes

Varietal: Malbec

The heavy purple bunches of Malbec grapes found growing in many New and Old World countries produce some extremely varied and distinctive wines. Their thick skins have a high tannin content, which means the wines produced from them are generally full-bodied and deep red in color. Single variety Malbec wines tend to be extremely plummy in their flavor, packing a strong punch and making them ideal for matching with spicy foods. However, because of their high malic acid content and their powerful tannins, many wineries use these grapes for blending with more mellow varietals, producing wonderfully complex wines which age beautifully and produce remarkable flavors and aromas. Because of this, Malbec holds the high position of being one of the few grape varietals used in the production of Bordeaux wines, widely recognized as being the finest wines on earth.
barrel

Region: Cuyo

The region of Cuyo has been internationally associated with fine Argentinian wine for several decades, and has a wine history which stretches back centuries to the time of the original Spanish settlers, who sought areas in which to plant imported grape vines for sacramental wine production. The region contains several of Argentina's most renowned and widely appreciated provinces, including the Mendoza, La Rioja, San Juan and San Luis, and the mountainous nature of this arid region provides an ideal environment for vineyard cultivation. As the mighty Desaguadero River snakes its way between the Andes, it deposits plenty of important minerals in the soil, which allow grape varietals closely associated with the Argentinian wine industry – such as Malbec – to grow to a perfect level of ripeness. As such, even in the driest areas of the Cuyo region, flavorful and fruit-forward wines are produced in impressive amounts.
fields

Country: Argentina

In the dry, arid deserts of Argentina, wineries and winemakers are focusing their efforts on producing high quality wines for the world market. By experimenting with both traditional and modern methods and technologies, they have found great success with a wide variety of grapes well suited to the conditions of the country, particularly Malbec, Bonarda and Cabernet Sauvignon. Over the past decade, Argentinian wineries have continued to aim high, and this has led to a range of new wines using grape varietals not typically associated with the country. The cooler regions of Argentina are seeing more vineyards being planted with Cabernet Franc and Pinot Noir varietals, something that is beginning to produce fantastic results, which are at once representative of the country's wines - with all their fruity and bold character - but are also pushing the boundaries of what we expect from a New World country.