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Bodega Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard
The Adrianna Vineyard is the crown jewel in the Bodega Catena Zapata portfolio. The Adrianna vineyard is located in the Gualtallary geographic indication, one of the highest altitude vineyard areas in Argentina. Gualtallary sits at nearly 5000 ft. altitude and a latitude of 33° S resulting in more intense sunlight and more direct overhead angle of the sun’s rays. In addition, the altitude means less absorption by the atmosphere, again increasing solar intensity. Luckily, the altitude also translates to excellent cooling at night. The vine’s response to these conditions is thicker skins, fully ripe grapes but with excellent acidity due to the nighttime cooling. The vineyard is separated into a number of parcelas which are the source of several of their top wines. The Fortuna Terrae parcela is planted to Malbec and is the source of the wine in this post. Bodega Catena Zapata has a wealth of information posted online. I especially like their Youtube channel.

Disclosure: I received the “Malbec Mon Amour” book as a sample earlier this year. I purchased the Fortuna Terrae Adrianna Vineyard wine at normal retail price. There was no compensation involved in this post, all opinions expressed are my own.

Bodega Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard Fortuna Terra Vino de Parcela Malbec 2018 ($139 at wine.com) 13.5%abv
Eye: Deep ruby
Nose: Medium plus intensity aromas of violets, fresh ripe blueberries, dried blueberries, blackberries, black plum, dark chocolate, cedar, subtle vanilla.
Mouth: Dry, medium plus mouthwatering acidity, medium plus fully resolved tannins, medium alcohol, full body, medium plus intensity flavors, long finish of dark chocolate and blueberries. Flavors follow the nose with dark chocolate and dried blueberries prominent.
Observations: The care that went into this wine shows beyond the words above. The aromas and flavors were very precise and lingered beautifully. The texture of the wine showed a balance between the firm structure and how polished it was. It drank beautifully only a few years from the vintage, but I wouldn’t hesitate to age it as it will surely gain even more complexity with time.

Digging Into Adrianna via “Malbec mon amour”
Reading about the place with wine in-hand was a real pleasure. I could imagine the view, the sunlight and the cooling at night.

Malbec and Steak
We grilled medium rare tenderloins from our favorite farmers at Sunshine Harvest Farms, topping the steak with chimichurri sauce from our friends at Vindulge. Grill roasted potatoes (russet and sweet mixed) and a simple salad rounded out our meal. This chimichurri sauce is quite intense with both herbs and garlic. It needs a full flavored red wine, something subtle and elegant might be lost against all that flavor. Big red wines like Malbec are naturals with a nice steak and our Fortuna Terrae was no exception. If red wine and steak is a favorite of yours, this combination is worthy of note!