Argentina’s Mendoza region has become world famous for its mouthwatering Malbecs from this mountainous region in South America.
On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, France’s Bordeaux region needs almost no introduction for its legendary blended red wines revered by wine lovers around the world.
Both places have legions of fans who adore the subtle, sophisticated favors of wines created in these two, distinct areas.
But what if you could combine the best of both worlds?
Fortunately, you can. Thanks to a partnership between Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) in France and the Catena family in Argentina, you can enjoy outstanding red wines made by Bodegas Caro in Argentina.
Recently, I tasted three of Bodegas Caro’s red wines as part of an online tasting hosted by Philippe Rolet, the Estate Manager for Bodegas Caro. Throughout the tasting, I was thoroughly impressed by the elegance and complexity of all three wines, which range in price from $15 to $65 a bottle. Below, you’ll find my tasting notes along with Rolet’s descriptions of each wine.
WINES RECOMMENDED THIS WEEK
2018 Bodegas Caro Aruma ($15 Suggested Retail Price)
2017 Bodegas Caro Amancaya ($20 SRP)
2017 Bodegas Caro CARO ($65 SRP)
CHATEAU LAFITE ROTHSCHILD
One of the original ‘First Growth’ Bordeaux wines (the highest rating given to four Bordeaux wineries in 1855), Chateau Lafite Rothschild has been revered for centuries for its elegant, refined red wines that age beautifully for decades. Located in Pauillac in the Medoc subregion of Bordeaux, Lafite Rothschild wines are made with a blend of predominately Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and a small amount of Merlot, the traditional blend for Bordeaux red wines from the left bank of the Gironde River.
CATENA ZAPATA
This world-renowned, family-owned winery has been making wine in Argentina’s Mendoza region since 1902. Founded by Nicola Catena, his grandson, Nicolas Catena Zapata, has carried on the family tradition of creating outstanding, high-altitude wines regularly referred to as the Grand Cru of South America. Famous for its magnificent Malbec wines, Catena Zapata also produces complex Chardonnays and Cabernet Sauvignons.
BODEGAS CARO
Created in 1999 in partnership with Lafite Rothschild and the Catena family, Bodegas Caro focuses on making wines with Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from two distinct, high-altitude areas in Argentina’s Mendoza region - The First Zone (the first place where Malbec grapes were grown in Argentina) and The Uco Valley (located about one hour south of Mendoza).
WINE TASTING NOTES
2018 Bodegas Caro Aruma
Grapes - 100 percent Malbec
Winemaker’s Tasting Notes - “All Malbec are not entirely the same,” Rolet said, noting that Malbec grapes have thrived in Argentina’s Mendoza region since the 1850s. “Malbec at that time really adapted itself quite well to Mendoza... Now in Mendoza, we have a specific selection of Malbec. This Malbec was pre-phylloxera,” the disease that wiped out many vineyards in France in the 1860s. “That’s why today when we compare genetically the Malbec from Argentina to France or other places in the world they are not the same. The leaves are different. The grapes are different. And the wines are different. Here, we have a traditional Malbec coming from altitude... To protect the seeds (at altitude), the grapes (used to make Aruma) have a thicker skin. In the skin, you have tannins. So usually when you get higher (in altitude), you have grapes with higher contents of natural good things for red wines, good colors and flavors... You also get more fresh air in the night in the mountains... This cold air is going down and you have cold air (in the vineyards) at night. And if you have more cold air, you have more acidity in the wines... The idea here was to produce a wine with a lot of fruit and a lot of freshness.”
Writer’s Tasting Notes - Flinty, dry, austere flavors abound in this thrilling red wine, which is one of the best red wines for under $20 a bottle. The wine’s vibrant yet subtle fruit flavors taste great two or three days after opening the bottle.
2017 Bodegas Caro Amancaya
Grapes - 72 percent Malbec, 28 percent Cabernet Sauvignon
Winemaker’s Tasting Notes - “This wine is the second wine of the winery. It was born in 2003, the first vintage. It is a blend. It has always been a blend between Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. Why does Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon mix so well? Malbec tends to oxidate and the Cabernet is a relative grape. So with blending both, we are equilibrating the wine... This vintage (2017) was dry and cold, which is one of my favorite” climates. “If we look back at other vintages in the last decade - 2007, 2005, 2009 - are this kind of vintage, which was dry and cold and which I like in Argentina.” Rolet added they blend the wine “the Bordeaux way,” meaning they make an early blend, age the early blend in barrels and store the other wine in tanks before blending both together and bottling. Rolet added that the wine is aged in finely-grained barrels made by Lafite Rothschild in France.
Writer’s Tasting Notes - Restrained, dry, reserved red wine with subtle yet bright, ripe fruit flavors. Fascinating complexity and depth, this wine tastes even slightly better the second day, exhibiting even more finesse and restraint. Tastes great now and over the next five years or even longer.
2017 Bodegas Caro CARO
Grapes - 74 percent Malbec, 26 percent Cabernet Sauvignon
Winemaker’s Tasting Notes - “It’s a limited production. It’s not produced every year. We only produce it when the vintage allows us to produce it. It’s a wine which is scarce because it comes from a very specific subdivision of terroir... The mountains and the rain are scarce in Mendoza. So it means when it rains, it rains very hard and the soil is not prepared to absorb this water. So what happens is when it rains a lot in the Andes Mountains, it creates rivers that go down to the Andes and those rivers in the last 10,000 to 100,000 years created alluvial fans that come down from the river. These alluvial fans have had an evolution depending on where the river has flowed, which means most of the vineyards which are planted in Mendoza are on those alluvial fans. We have several of them in Mendoza.” Some of these alluvial fans have different types of soils. As a result, “the soil knowledge is absolutely imperative,” Rolet said. “The Caro grapes come from vineyards where we have made a special selection within the vineyard because of the subsoil. And what we are looking for this wine is calcareous soil,” which is chalky, calcium-rich limestone soil. Rolet added they are looking for grapes “with more tension, more elegance” when making the Caro wine, which Rolet said is well “known in Argentina for being one of the most elegant wines.” Before bottling, all of the wine was aged in barrels.
Writer’s Tasting Notes - The most elegant, refined wine of the tasting, the Caro combines earthy, robust flavors with a smooth, silky finish. The soft fruit flavors last nearly a minute after each taste. Let me that this outstanding wine tastes phenomenal right now but has the potential to age and develop over the next 5 to 8 years - if you can wait that long.
Cheers!
Wine Press by Ken Ross appears on Masslive.com every Monday and in The Republican’s weekend section every Thursday.
Follow Ken Ross on Twitter and Instagram.
September 29, 2020 at 01:10AM
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