Catena Zapata, Nicolás, 2023
Catena Zapata, Nicolás, 2023
- 75cl
- 14.5%
- Red Still
- Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon
- Organic
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Drinking window: 2027 - 2040
Est. delivery in 2027
Nicolás Catena Zapata is the flagship of one of Argentina's most important wine families — a Bordeaux-inspired blend of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon from high-altitude vineyards in Mendoza that has spent the better part of three decades quietly proving that Argentina can produce wines of genuine world-class ambition.
The 2023 vintage is a young, serious wine: dark-fruited, mineral, and structured, with the kind of tannin architecture that suggests it will be considerably more interesting in three or four years' time.
We think of this as the wine that redrew the map for Mendoza — not because it follows a European template slavishly, but because Nicolas Catena used it to show what altitude and old vine intensity could achieve on their own terms.
What the critics say:
"Aromas of graphite, hazelnuts, chocolate, paprika, sweet tobacco and cassis. A classic Bordeaux blend of 70% cabernet sauvignon. 27% malbec and 3% cabernet franc. Almost full-bodied with tight, fine-grained tannins. A bit of graphite in the middle, with a very long and structured finish. Drink now or hold."
"The 2023 Nicolás Catena Zapata is composed of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Malbec and 3% Cabernet Franc, drawn from Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary and Nicasia Vineyard in Paraje Altamira and matured for 18 months in first- and second-use barrels. Perennially one of the more classically informed wines in the Catena Zapata range, it is an impressive rendition of the vintage, opening with a complex bouquet of ripe red fruits, dried sage, cedar and espresso. The mouthfeel is dense, compact and tightly knit as it transitions into a similarly taut finish slowly moved along by bright acidity, firm tannins and well-integrated woody flavors."
The grapes for Nicolas come from Catena's oldest and highest-elevation vineyard parcels in Mendoza, sitting between 900 and 1,450 metres above sea level in the Luján de Cuyo and Gualtallary sub-regions. The high altitude means significant diurnal temperature swings — warm enough to ripen fully, cool enough at night to preserve acidity and freshness. Soils are predominantly sandy and rocky alluvial deposits over limestone and clay, which give the wine its characteristic mineral precision rather than the jammy weight that lower-altitude Mendoza can produce.
Mendoza is Argentina's most important wine region by quality and quantity, sprawling across the foothills of the Andes and home to around two-thirds of the country's total wine output. Within it, sub-zones like Luján de Cuyo and the Uco Valley carry the most prestige, particularly for Malbec. There are no strict appellation rules on the level of a French AOC — Argentina's wine laws are more permissive — but the best producers self-regulate through grape selection and vineyard sourcing, and the Mendoza name on a serious label still carries significant weight internationally.
The 2023 vintage in Mendoza arrived with its own particular rhythm. Spring brought adequate rainfall to replenish the soils after several drier years, though producers had to stay alert during flowering to manage the increased humidity. Summer unfolded with the kind of temperature swings that make Mendoza tick: hot days balanced by those crucial cool nights that flow down from the Andes, preserving acidity whilst allowing phenolic ripening to proceed at its own pace.
What emerged from the cellars shows Mendoza at its most expressive. The Malbecs display that wonderful combination of concentrated dark fruit and mineral backbone that comes when the vines have enough water early on but must work a bit harder later in the season. Cabernet Sauvignon benefited particularly well from the conditions, producing wines with structure and depth that should reward patience. Most 2023s are drinking beautifully now, offering immediate pleasure, though the better examples will happily cellar until 2035 or beyond.
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