From: Barreal, Calingasta Valley, San Juan, Argentina
Varietal: 85% Bonarda Piemontese, 15% Barbera, Grignolino, and a few yet to be identified varietals
Taste & Critical Acclaim: WA 91 PTS WINE ADVOCATE. The 2019 Tinto was a blend of mostly Bonarda and Barbera from grapes picked the first week of March at 13.2% alcohol and with mellow acidity. It fermented in concrete eggs after the full clusters were foot trodden and matured in those eggs for eight months. It has notes of Mediterranean herbs, aniseed, fennel, esparto grass, and thyme, less floral and a very juicy palate with fine-grained tannins. 12,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in October 2019.
About. Cara Sur was formed in 2011 as a partnership between two couples inspired to revive ancestral vines and produce wines from traditional Argentine varietals. Sebastián Zuccardi and Marcela Manini teamed up with Nuria Año Gargiulo and Pancho Burgallo, an avid mountaineering couple who live in Barreal, in the Calingasta Valley of San Juan, north of Mendoza. They produce wines from 80 year old vines of Moscatel, Moscatel Negro, Bonarda Piedmontese, and Criolla Chica (the Argentine iteration of Pais). The vines are Parral trained, a ceiling-trellised system that provides shade and maximizes airflow. The vineyard sits alongside the Los Patos River on stony soil at 1500 meters above sea level. The Cara Sur wines are made in a tiny winery next to Pancho and Nuria’s home where they produce small quantities with minimal intervention. Sebastian and Marcela regularly make the trip north to work alongside Pancho and Nuria. The quartet are producing some of the most unique wines from one of the most underrated microclimates of Argentina. Cara Sur translates to South Face and refers to the more challenging approach to Cerro Mercedario one of Argentina’s tallest peaks, which can be seen from Barreal.
