Nicolás Catena Zapata
2004
At heart, Catena is a story about family. Family who poured their lives, passion, and spirit into transforming scrub-laden desert into some of the most beautiful and unique vineyards in the world. Family that passed their knowledge from generation to generation, blending collective memory with state-of-the-art science from the new world of viticulture. Family who, through risk-taking, faith, and a little luck, transformed their treasured Mendoza terroir into the fountainhead of the...
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The harvest is done by hand, and some parcels are fermented as whole bunches to enhance tannic structure and freshness. The fermentation takes place in 225 and 500 liter oak barrels at temperatures of 28-30ºC for about 18 days. The post-fermentative maceration lasts between 28 and 30 days. The wine carries out its malolactic fermentation and is then aged in French oak barrels for 24 months.
Nicolás Catena Zapata has an intense, deep purple color with bluish-black tones. On the nose, aromas of black fruits – blackberries, black cherries, black plums – predominate with subtle notes of vanilla and dark chocolate intermingled with savory hints of green olive and a stony minerality. On the palate, the wine is tremendously complex, unfolding layer upon layer of red currant, eucalyptus, and black pepper flavors. Black cherries and blackberries give way to cassis followed by a hint of saline minerality. The wine is remarkably concentrated with a firm tannic structure providing the backbone for the lush fruit. The finish is long, a foretoken of the long aging potential of this Argentine masterpiece. Let the Nicolás Catena Zapata open in a decanter while you grill a Bone-in Ribeye Steak to perfection. Pour yourself a glass. Bliss.
Loads of licorice and currants with a smoky, chocolate and coffee undertone. Aniseed, too. Sweet tobacco. It’s medium-to full-bodied with creamy tannins and a soft finish. It’s totally resolved and delicious now, in a bigger style. 78% cabernet sauvignon and 22% malbec.
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Rich and showy, with lots of licorice snap, plum sauce, graphite, boysenberry and milk chocolate notes all carried by rich, velvety tannins. The long, fleshy finish is very accessible. Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. Drink now through 2011. 990 cases imported.
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Catena Zapata’s flagship is the Nicolas Catena Zapata, a Cabernet Sauvignon-Malbec blend. The 2004 Nicolas Catena Zapata is composed of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon and 28% Malbec. It spent 18 months in 100% new French oak. A saturated black purple in color, it has an aristocratic perfume of pain grille, mineral, espresso, saddle leather, cassis, black currant, and black raspberry. Opulently textured, complex, ripe, and sweet on the palate, it maintains a sense of elegance as well as power. It demands 10-15 years of further cellaring and should still be providing pleasure at age 50. It strikes me as being Argentina’s equivalent of a great vintage of Lafite-Rothschild.
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