In Bond Fine Wine. 2019 Catena Zapata River Malbec, Adrianna Vineyard, Adrianna Vineyard, Uco Valley, Argentina. Red argentina in 3x75cl. Top critic score: 99/100 (WA). Drinking window: 2021–2039. Sold in bond by Albany Vintners, independent fine wine merchants.
Founded in Mendoza in 1902, Catena Zapata is one of the defining names in modern Argentine wine. It was Nicolas Catena's belief in the potential of extreme high-altitude vineyards that transformed the family's fortunes and helped change international perceptions of Argentine fine wine. The Adrianna Vineyard, planted high in Gualtallary in the foothills of the Andes, was initially considered an audacious experiment. Today it is the source of Catena's most celebrated wines. Under Laura Catena and winemaker Alejandro Vigil, detailed research into altitude, soils and individual vineyard parcels has taken this work even further. Wines such as White Stones and White Bones are the result: tiny-production, site-specific wines that have established Adrianna as one of the world's most exciting vineyards.
James Suckling (JS) — 98/100 · JamesSuckling.com, 16/03/2021
So bright and aromatic with flowers and blackberries, as well as some black olives. Full-bodied with lots of tannins, yet they are so fine and integrated and spread across the palate. This is all whole-cluster fermentation and 18 months in large oak casks. Needs about four or five years to come together.
Joaquin Hidalgo (JH) — 97/100 · Vinous, 01/11/2021 · Drink 2021-2039
The 2019 Malbec Adrianna Vineyard River Stone comes from a parcel off the Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary, planted at an altitude of 4,400 feet in a dried river bed. Aged for 20 months in new and used French barrels, it is a rich purple in the glass thanks to the intense sunlight. The nose offers plum, sour cherry and blueberry with herbs, lavender, hints of balsam and oaky aromas such as cedar…
Luis Gutiérrez (LG) — 99/100 · Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com · Drink 2023-2034
The old River Stones has seen its name simplified to 2019 Adrianna Vineyard River. This is an exceptional vintage for this bottling, from a very stony part of the large Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary, close to the dry river. It's the equivalent to the White Stones white, with a north-facing exposure, the warmer exposure, which in cooler years like 2019 works nicely. The wine has harmony and sub…