98-pt. Old-Vine Cabernet, Only $72!

WHY BUY: Everything that we love about Zapata, a 4th-generation family producer and one of the great winemaking dynasties in the world, is here in these two critically-acclaimed, powerfully-expressive, and value-laden reds (a 98-point Angelica Zapata ‘Birth of Cabernet’ 2022 for $72 and a 95-point Malbec Nico for $76). The high-elevation vineyards, the old vines that reach back more than 100 years (including pre-phylloxera vines), the passionate pursuit of precision in every ready-to-drink bottle, it’s all here. And just to put a finer point on it: both of these bottles, well under $100 and crafted with consummate care, would easily command 50% more (or more!) if they were coming from France or Italy. 

PEDIGREE: Robert Parker launched Catena Zapata on its current trajectory, likening one bottling to a "great vintage of Lafite-Rothschild.” It was not long after that many referred to Catena Zapata as Argentina’s first Grand Vin. It also happens to be the oldest Argentine family winery still in family hands.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING: James Suckling reveled in the Angelica Zapata Birth of Cabernet 2022, extolling, in a 96-point rave of a review, its complex aromatics of "cigar box, tobacco and dark truffles with lots of ripe dark olives" and  "piles of dusty tannins [that] grow on the palate in a crescendo, with great focus and freshness." The "layered, lengthy finish,” he wrote, "goes on and on." Vinous lauded the Malbec Nico 2021, awarding 95 point and singling out the "fruit-forward aromas feature violet and lavender, along with plum and black fruit" with "a compact texture with a hint of chalkiness" and "intense, juicy flavors” — in all, a  "delicious, modern Malbec, crafted from a cold vintage at high elevation."

THE STORY: Let's call this one The Grandson Also Rises. Though the Catena story began, properly, in 1902 with Italian immigrant Nicola Catena's first Mendoza vineyard, it was his grandson Nicolás who transformed the estate's fortunes and dramatically elevated its trajectory. Here was a classic case of the right person arriving at precisely the right moment in history. In the 1980s, when Argentine wine was still regarded as a regional curiosity, Nicolás, an economist by training, saw what so many others missed: Mendoza's untapped potential to become a world-class wine destination. Combining an analytical mind with a visionary's ambition, he embarked upon a mission that seemed, at the time, farfetched: to elevate Catena Zapata to the pinnacle of the wine world. His approach was ruthlessly methodical: establish vineyards at higher elevations in search of cooler climates, beginning with La Pirámide vineyard in Agrelo, then expanding to Domingo and Adrianna vineyards in Tupungato, and, finally, to the Nicasia vineyard in Paraje Altamira. Today, Laura Catena leads the operation, alongside a distinguished team, including Alejandro Vigil in the winery and Fernando Buscema at the Catena Institute of Wine. Together, they take a science-driven approach that has redefined not just their own wines but the entire Argentine wine industry. Their high-altitude vineyards are an almost diabolical crucible of intense sunlight, cool temperatures, and poor soils, all of which stresses the vines to the maximum, producing grapes of optimal concentration and complexity.

OUR TASTING NOTES: This is just the second bottling of Birth of Cabernet 2022 (last year was the first), but you sure wouldn’t know it; it carries itself with a striking maturity, and, as you’ll discover, conceals a wealth of subtle surprises. The aromatics put you in mind of walking into a leather-bound library, the kind that someone's been smoking cigars in for decades, but then the palate does something unexpected: it builds tension rather than releasing it, creating an almost cinematic sense of anticipation that keeps you coming back to see how the story unfolds and develops. The Malbec Nico 2021, built from fruit from pre-phylloxera vines planted at 1,550 meters, feels both ancient and wholly contemporary. The violet and lavender aromatics are gorgeous, and show that when you stop trying to make Malbec taste like Bordeaux (and let it be gloriously, unapologetically itself) magic happens. There's a distinct minerality here (a testament to the high-altitude terroir), but there’s so much juiciness and savor that you’re compelled not to contemplate and think as you swirl and sip.

THE SPECS: The Malbec Nico is sourced from the Rosas family vineyard, which boasts nearly 100-year-old vines transplanted to Alto Gualtallary at 1,550 meters elevation. The massal selection (which preserves the genetic diversity of pre-phylloxera plantings by taking cuttings from the best individual vines rather than using clones) ensures that each vine contributes its unique characteristics. The wine is aged for 20 months, half in new oak and half in second-use French oak barrels. The Angelica Zapata Birth of Cabernet 2022 is crafted from high-elevation Cabernet Sauvignon, and given extended aging to develop its complexity and structure.

WHAT TO PAIR THEM WITH: The Birth of Cabernet demands flavors that are its equal when it comes to size and substance; try it with a pan-seared duck breast with cherry reduction, a rich, rosy-centered ribeye with red wine reduction, or an herb-crusted rack of lamb. The Malbec Nico seems to have been made to go with the grill; it’s a superb dance partner with charred steaks, but really anything that comes off the fire and sports a nice, crusty cap.

FUN FACT: Laura Catena, the fourth-generation vintner who leads the family operation today, isn’t just a winemaker. She’s also an emergency room physician in San Francisco, and has prided herself on bringing the same precision and care that are absolute essentials in caring for patients to her wines.

OUR GUARANTEE: As always, we only buy and source directly from the estate, so you can be confident that your wines will arrive with pristine provenance. Don't hesitate to secure yours today!