Challenge: Create and Execute an impactful wine presentation in under three minutes. Can we do it? This week - Rhianna Bangs and Susan Pajak are joined by Jorge Liloy; Portfolio Specialist at Winebow for the US Market. Can Jorge successfully outline the wine selection Nicolas Catena Zapata in three minutes? You be the judge...
The Catena family’s vision has been to uncover those magical places in each of the family’s vineyards that offer the purest expression of the land. Farming these special lots manually, hand-tending each of the vines, has led to the identification of individual plants which consistently produce the most exceptional fruit. Harvested separately in multiple passes through the vineyard, the grapes are then loaded by hand into French oak barrels for a long, cool fermentation with cap management being done by hand. The inaugural 1997 vintage of this Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec blend set a new standard of quality for wines from South America when it won a series of blind tasting against First Growth Bordeaux and other prestigious cuvées from around the world.
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.
For more information on Bodegas Catena Zapata:
www.catenazapata.com
Or find them on Instagram! @catenawines
