2020 Luca Chardonnay G Lot

Luca is the private project of Laura Catena. Laura has made her mark on the wine world and is often referred to as 'the face of Argentine wine', as she has meant a lot to the country. She recently presented her 100-year plan: "I want every collector in the world to have Nicolás Catena Zapata in their basement - that's my dream".

Another of Laura Catena's dreams was to create Luca, named after her eldest son. She wants to make quality wines with Luca, in which the perfect terroir, low yields per hectare and state-of-the-art winemaking are the keywords. The vineyards of Luca are located at an altitude of 900 to 1500 meters and are among the highest in Mendoza. Old vines can be found here, which may no longer produce much, but keep the quality of the vineyard (and therefore the wines) high. She wants to show the best expression of each grape variety. Luca has planted six grape varieties in total: chardonnay, malbec, pinot noir, syrah, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc.

The grapes for the Laura Catena Luca Chardonnay 'G-Lot' come from 'Gualtallary', a vineyard in Tupungato, Mendoza. With this, Laura Catena was the first to make a chardonnay from an extreme height, namely 1500 meters above sea level. The soil is rocky and calcareous, which brings a sizzling minerality to the taste. The fermentation takes place spontaneously, 80% in oak barrels, 20% in stainless steel tanks at very low temperatures. The wine then undergoes a malolactic conversion. This is done to soften the acidity and give the wine a rounder, creamier mouthfeel. Subsequently, the chardonnay matures 'sur lie' for twelve months in oak barrels, 25% of which are new and the rest are second-year oak. In the glass, the wine has a lemon yellow color. In the nose aromas of lemon cream, white peach, baked pear, vanilla and minerality. In the taste, the wood aging comes to the fore with notes of toast, vanilla and nutmeg, supplemented with tropical fruit (pineapple, melon and ripe apple). Delicious with dishes with fried mushrooms or butter sauce, for example pasta with mushroom cream sauce or sole fried in butter.