Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec 2023

Catena Zapata's Nicasia Vineyard Malbec 2023 comes from a single site in Altamira, one of Mendoza's most sought-after high-altitude Malbec vineyard locations. Dark fruit, cocoa and violet lead on the nose, with hazelnut and orange peel underneath, a full-bodied and fine-tannined palate with a long finish. A wine for someone who wants to taste what one vineyard, on its own, can do with Malbec.

Altamira sits in the southern end of Mendoza's Uco Valley, and its gravelly, free-draining soils over an old riverbed have made it one of the region's most closely watched sites for serious Malbec. Nicasia Vineyard was planted there in 1996 with a selection of Catena's own Malbec cuttings, at just over 1,000 metres above sea level.

This is a single-vineyard wine, made from Nicasia alone rather than blended with fruit from elsewhere, so it shows what this particular terrior does with Malbec in a given year. It's a wine for a special dinner or for someone building a collection of serious Argentine Malbec, rather than a week-night bottle.

What it tastes like

Dark berries and cocoa lead on the nose, with violet, hazelnut and a touch of orange peel running underneath. The palate is full-bodied and dense, with fine-grained, well-integrated tannins and a savoury, faintly saline edge alongside the fruit. It finishes long, with chalky minerality carrying through well after the last sip.

Style at a glance

• Body: Full
• Sweetness: Dry
• Tannin: Firm, fine-grained
• Oak: Aged in second-use French oak, so the fruit and the site lead rather than the barrel
• Style: Single-vineyard, high-altitude, structured Malbec

Food

Char-grilled ribeye or a whole roasted lamb shoulder, venison with a juniper jus, braised beef short rib, hard aged cheeses like Manchego or Gouda, or a rich mushroom risotto if you want something meat-free that can still stand up to the tannin.

Who makes it

Catena Zapata is a fourth-generation family winery in Mendoza, led by Laura Catena, and one of the wineries most responsible for establishing Argentine Malbec as a serious, age-worthy wine. Nicasia Vineyard is one of the family's flagship single-vineyard sites: 100 acres in Altamira, planted in 1996 to a selection of Catena's own Malbec cuttings, at 1,095 metres on shallow, gravelly loam over a dry riverbed that drains fast and keeps yields naturally low. Low yields on a site like this mean small berries and concentrated flavour, which is a large part of why this vineyard is bottled on its own rather than folded into a blend.

About the vintage

Mendoza's 2023 season opened with severe spring frosts at the end of October and start of November 2022, which cut yields across the region by an estimated 30 to 50 percent. What followed was one of Argentina's hottest, driest summers in decades, and premium high-altitude sites like Altamira responded by concentrating what fruit remained rather than losing quality to the heat.

Alejandro Vigil, Catena Zapata's wine director, described the season as "an early harvest with low yields but with unprecedented balance between the malic acidity, pH and ripeness" - grapes came in two to four weeks earlier than usual, in excellent health, with the reduced crop concentrating flavour rather than diluting it.

Across Mendoza, 2023 is being talked about as a vintage for the cellar: high natural acidity, moderate alcohol and real structure, the kind of year that rewards patience rather than early drinking. It was a difficult, frost-affected season for growers throughout the region, and the wines coming out of it are turning out to be some of the more age-worthy Mendoza has produced in recent years.

Critic scores and ratings

• 96 POINTS – James Suckling

When to drink it

This is a wine built to cellar. Full-bodied, high-altitude Malbec of this style typically rewards five to fifteen years in bottle, and the 2023 vintage's concentration and acidity suggest it will be no exception; Catena Zapata hasn't published a specific drinking window for this release. It will also drink well now with an hour or two of decanting if you'd rather open it sooner.

Technical details

Where to buy

The Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec 2023 is available in store at The Winery's Queenstown and Arrowtown stores.

Questions we are often asked

What does Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec 2023 taste like?

It's a full-bodied Malbec with dark berries, cocoa and violet on the nose, hazelnut and orange peel underneath, fine-grained tannins, a savoury saline edge and a long, chalky finish.

What food goes with Nicasia Vineyard Malbec?

Char-grilled ribeye, roasted lamb shoulder, venison, braised short rib, hard aged cheeses, or a rich mushroom risotto if you want something meat-free that still stands up to the tannin.

What makes Nicasia Vineyard different from Catena Zapata's other Malbecs?

It's a single-vineyard wine made only from the Nicasia Vineyard in Altamira, rather than a blend of several sites. The vineyard's shallow, gravelly soil and high altitude keep yields naturally low, which concentrates the fruit.

How long will Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec 2023 keep?

Full-bodied, high-altitude Mendoza Malbec of this style typically cellars well for 5 to 15 years. Catena Zapata hasn't published a specific window for this release, but the 2023 vintage's acidity and structure point to good ageing potential.

What was the 2023 vintage like in Mendoza?

Severe spring frosts cut yields significantly, and a hot, dry summer followed. Catena Zapata's Alejandro Vigil described an early harvest with low yields but unprecedented balance between acidity, pH and ripeness, and the region's 2023 reds are generally regarded as concentrated and age-worthy.

Where can I buy Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec 2023?

The Winery stocks Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec 2023 in its Queenstown and Arrowtown stores.