Bodega Chacra is situated in the Río Negro, a dry, cool, windswept expanse in the center of Patagonia. It is an extraordinary place. I visited wineries in the region in early 2015 and felt like I’d gone to the edge of the world.
The light is clear and strong, but air tumbles down from the Andes to generate big diurnal temperature swings, great for slow ripening. Farming at Chacra is organic, and vines are un-grafted. This Pinot derives from the youngest portion of their vineyard, just twenty years old, and the fruit was de-stemmed and fermented with ambient yeast in cement tanks. Malolactic took place on lees in neutral oak, and the wine enjoyed one racking during its yearlong élevage.
I love this wine so much. I love its shiny fruits and breezy-coolness; it smells like red wind. I love its light-hearted texture, the attack of acid that bleeds into fruit then attenuates, slowly, into steel. Its body is unveiled, un-spiced and un-adored, but not completely transparent, because there is earth, too, an impression of red soil, black soil, dust, and evermore.
I wish more Pinot Noir were built like this.
13.5% abv | about $25 (sample) Imported by Kobrand
Thanks for that. When Laura and I visited Argentina in 2010 we preferred Patagonian wines to wines from Mendoza. I shall have to look for this.
I like the Patagonian wines very much. Definitely look for them.
I have never paid attention to Argentine Pinot Noir; perhaps because I have been solely focused on Malbec from Mendoza. I am intrigued and hopefully I’ll find this juice.