Another cold harvest, the second of a cycle that did not appear to be so long. And it was another harvest to remember, both for some of its wines and for the conditions that preceded it.
For example, memorable was September 9, 2013 in the upper Uco Valley. In Gualtallary, a technical amplitude of almost 40 degrees is produced in 24-hour men! For historical records, this event must have very little precedent. The maximum was recorded on the afternoon of the 9th, after an area was 34.8 degrees, followed by one of mine that occurred in the early morning of September 10 of -5.1 degrees.
After hot and dry months like December and January, the cold weather of February, March and April, along with the rains that fell during harvest time, marked the differences in quality between the different sites.
In places where the cycle is very late, harvests of these characteristics are more complicated than in earlier sites. In these, either because of their higher temperatures or because they are cold places but with restrictive, stony, or not so deep soils, maturity is anticipated, giving a favorable condition of precocity, especially in years where the rains bother more than expected. normal.
2014 was a slightly more inconsistent harvest than 2013, but that irregularity was highly determined by the sites. Therefore, the best did not stop standing out and the less qualitative suffered more. And here, not only the place, but also the work of each producer or winegrower in particular, made the difference.
Our wines
Given the particularity of this harvest, we decided to explore new horizons and as the title anticipates, we went to look for sectors that would allow us to harvest early, but with the level of maturity that we like in our wines.
And thus our first Volare Del Camino was born, a pure Malbec from Gualtallary that comes from a small plot with a lot of very superficial limestone, which without being either white rock or painted stone gives us a wine that maintains depth and intensity, but with fluidity and tension. It is: “The path to the calcareous rock” without being itself. With David we like to call it the essential wine. Fresh like a mist of lime and flowers, like an essence that perfumes the mouth, contaminating everything in its path with the typical Gualtallary character.
Our Malbec with a few bunches of Cabernet Franc (Iubileus) and our co-fermented Malbec and Cabernet Franc (La Craie) year after year seem more Gualtallary to us than two associated varieties in a blend or a joint fermentation, regardless of the slight variations that in the moment we decide regarding the participation of each strain. The frankness of the aromas of both surprises: they are very expressive and have a notable personality. For us they are self-made wines with Gualtallary’s verticality intact.
Francesa, our beloved blend of plots from the other inconsiderate place, but today growing in popularity Los Chacayes, shows in this vintage its most herbal, floral and natural side. With its classic potpourri of herbs, flowers and balsamic notes. In the mouth it shows a different tannic texture than the other two – without this being a virtue or a weakness but rather its particular characteristic, which we do not want to hide because otherwise we would be going against our own principles of wanting to show our unfiltered wines.
And as a novelty, along with our 2014 vintage, we recently bottled our Volare de Flor. We believe – the first organically aged white wine in the country, in this modern era of Argentine wine. For us a very special and nostalgic wine for many reasons. A wine that, more than words to describe it, is worth trying. It is scarce but there is always something for friends.
And speaking of nostalgia, I close this story with the song that inspires those who tried our Volare in those first tastings among friends. As soon as David served as Flor in the glasses, in unison everyone sang the chorus of this 1958 song.
Bye!
very interesting points you have noted , thankyou for posting .