Features
Name:
Chardonnay Mendoza 2020
Terrain:
Deep, calcareous and rocky soil.
Cellar
El Enemigo is one of the most prestigious wineries in Argentine oenology. A young winery founded in 2007 in Mendoza, headed by Adrianna and Alejandro. Adrianna is the youngest daughter of Nicolás Catena Zapata and has lived and breathed wine since childhood. Today Adrianna combines her academic experience with her passion for viticulture and winemaking, dividing her time between El Enemigo Wines and Catena Zapata. Alejandro has been chief winemaker at Bodega Catena Zapata since 2002 and has received the first 100-point score awarded to a South American wine by Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate (CZ River Stones 2016) and the highest score ever awarded to a pure Cabernet Franc (Gran Enemigo Gualtallary 2013). It also holds the first 100pt. score for an Argentinian Chardonnay by James Suckling (CZ White Bones 2018). The name 'el enemigo' means 'the enemy', chosen for this project because, as the producers themselves state, the original enemy is ourselves and defines us, the only way to grow is to confront it. The vineyards of the El Enemigo winery are distributed between the areas of Gualtallary, El Cepillo, Chacayes and Agrelo, where altitudes range from 970 to 1,470 metres above sea level. Soils are made up of sand, silt and limestone, others are rich in rock and limestone, and still others are predominantly sandy.
Description
The pure Chardonnay grapes are cultivated near the Andes mountain range at an altitude of between 930 and 1470 metres above sea level, with the Gualtallary vineyard reaching the maximum height of the winery's holdings. A climate characterised by significant temperature fluctuations between day and night. Fermentation takes place with the use of indigenous yeasts in mostly new French barriques and an ageing period of 9 months. A Chardonnay of extraordinary power and personality born from the skilful hands of Alejandro Vigil. The mission is to express the landscape, the climate and the particularities of the vintage, an objective fully achieved, perceptible in Adrianna and Alejandro's wines.
Organoleptic characteristics:
Straw-yellow colour with bright golden hues. Rich, intense, notes of ripe yellow-fleshed fruit, dried fruit, roasted hazelnuts meet white flowers, aromatic herbs. On the palate the entry is buttery, soft, lingering finish.
Storage time:
3-10 years
Vinification
Spontaneous alcoholic fermentation with indigenous yeasts in wood
Acknowledgements
2019 Robert Parker 93/100
