CATENA ZAPATA ADRIANNA VINEYARD
MENDOZA, ARGENTINA 2022
WHY BUY: Three near-perfect 99-pointers, including two Malbec masterpieces, that transcend their category … and for a fraction of the price of their top-tier peers in Bordeaux. These are wines of pedigree and precision, born of Catena Zapata’s renowned, high-altitude Adrianna vineyard — “the Grand Cru of South America,” some call it — which produces grapes going back more than 100 years. And their master winemakers have turned that superior raw material into minimal-intervention wines of extraordinary depth, complexity, and length.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING: James Suckling awarded 99 points to the Adrianna Chardonnay White Bones 2023, praising its "intense mineral tension, pronounced salinity and a delicious severity that sets this wine apart from even the greatest chardonnays of the world. Incredibly fresh and mouthwatering. Spectacular." He gave the same 99 points to the Adrianna Malbec River 2022, singling it out for its "arresting nose,” its “depth,” and its “profoundness” — a wine that is, above all, “seamless, taut and long." The Wine Advocate joined Suckling in awarding the Adrianna Malbec Mundus Bacillus Terrae 2022 a perfect 99 points, celebrating its "depth coupled with lift and elegance matched with assertion, all underpinned by a quiet, understated intensity that flows from the nose to the finish.” The two 98-pointers are no less impressive. Suckling hailed the 98-point Fortuna Terrae 2022 for its "impeccable chalky tannins,” its "structure and resolve,” and its “long, long finish.” and the 98-point Argentino Malbec 2022 for its poise and finesse, calling it "elegant and perfumed ... with compact, fine tannins and an extremely long finish."
OUR TASTING NOTES:
The White Bones Chardonnay 2023 is a wine of genuine, thrilling tension, thanks to its laser-focused acidity, which carries citrus and stone fruit across a broad but precise palate, and its sneaky salinity. This is what separates truly great Chardonnay from the merely impressive
The White Stones 2023 is all crystalline purity, with citrus zest dipping and twirling with flinty minerality; by the time you’ve started to process what it is you’re reveling in, you're already reaching for another sip
The Malbecs tell the story of what century-old vines at extreme altitude can accomplish when handled with utmost care. The Argentino 2022 — the most accessible entry point here — delivers elegance and perfume with juicy fruit and tannins so compact and fine they feel almost architectural
The Fortuna Terrae 2022 brings chalky tannins that provide structure without weight, and manages to be full-bodied and concentrated and deep, while maintaining a remarkable energy and freshness
The River 2022 is also notable for its profound depth, and like the Fortuna Terrae, somehow stays vibrant and taut in spite of its intensity and richness
Of the four Malbecs, the Mundus Bacillus Terrae 2022 might be the revelation of the group. It’s a wine of power and majesty, with a quiet intensity that builds from the first nosing of the glass (evocative and transportive) to the long, persistent finish. We loved its finesse and danceability.
THE STORY: As Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate has rightly observed, "It is difficult to avoid hyperbole when discussing the Catena family's impact on Argentine wine. It is the rare wine-producing country that can rightfully assign such an outsized contribution to the success of one producer ... Equally remarkable is the relatively brief time scale on which such a global phenomenon has occurred, spanning just three generations from its founding in 1908." Though Nicola Catena, an Italian immigrant, planted his first Mendoza vineyard in 1902, it was his grandson, Nicolás, who revolutionized everything in the 1980s, when Argentine wine was still largely considered a mere curiosity. An economist by training, Nicolás pursued higher-elevation sites methodically: La Pirámide in Agrelo, then Domingo and Adrianna in Tupungato, and finally Nicasia in Paraje Altamira. Today, Laura Catena runs the operation alongside winemaking director Alejandro Vigil, whom locals have christened "The Messi of Wine." The prized plot is the Adrianna. Perched at a perilously extreme elevation, intense sunlight, cool temperatures, and poor soils all stress the vines into extraordinary concentration. The wines are magic, but then, what has this estate produced over the years that isn’t exceptional? In the final analysis, Catena Zapata is that rare two-fer, a winery, in the words of The Wine Advocate, "that can be aptly described as both a juggernaut and an … intentional” artisan, with each wine "precisely summarizing their varieties and origins with equally yolked precision across the range.”
THE SPECS: All of these wines are sourced from the high-altitude Adrianna vineyard, where elevation creates optimal growing conditions. Beyond that, the winemaking is attentive to the most essential details. The White Bones Chardonnay undergoes fermentation and aging in French oak barrels with regular lees stirring to enhance texture and complexity. The Malbecs are vinified with minimal intervention, often incorporating whole-cluster fermentation to preserve freshness and add structural depth. Extended maceration and aging in a combination of new and used French oak barrels allow these wines to develop their full potential.
WHAT TO PAIR THEM WITH: The Chardonnays are sublime in the company of seafood (the richer, the better), or creamy risottos, while the Malbecs practically demand to be partnered up with grilled meats, ideally a charred and juice-dripping porterhouse or ribeye.
FUN FACT: The word “malbec” comes from two French words — mal, meaning bad, and bec, meaning mouth. In other words; to badmouth. In Cahors, the word was originally intended as a pejorative.
OUR GUARANTEE: We always buy and source directly from the estate to ensure pristine provenance. Secure your bottles and cases today!
*Offer NOT valid in-store. This offer is made pre-arrival, with wines estimated to be delivered to your preferred store in Winter 2025. With the supply chain issues that we are seeing globally, there may be some unforeseen delays which could affect the ETA. All sale prices are the lowest available at Total Wine & More and ONLY valid through Concierge Sales. No further discounts or coupons may be applied. Offer not valid in KS, MI, NE, NY, OK & TN. This offer is for TWO WEEKS, or until sold out, and will expire on Thursday, November 13th, 2025.