Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard River Malbec 2020 (750ml)
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Description
Catena Zapata's Adrianna Vineyard River is a Malbec from Gualtallary, the high-altitude subregion of Mendoza known for its mineral precision and structural intensity. The 2020 vintage, aged in large oak foudres, comes from a stony section of the vineyard, which shapes its character toward austerity and textural complexity.
This wine leans riper than some years but holds its composure through grainy, slightly rustic tannins that speak to Gualtallary's austere terroir. The fruit is juicy and layered, threaded with a distinctive spicy note, almost curry-like, that emerges alongside violet and berry. It opens slowly in the glass, revealing new dimensions as it breathes. The oak is still present and will benefit from additional time to settle, but the palate already feels beautifully textured and alive. This is a wine that captures the wildness of its high-altitude home.
Expert Reviews
The 2019 was a hard act to follow, but the 2020 Adrianna Vineyard River kept its poise, though it showed a little riper and with grainier tannins that gave it some faint rusticity and earthiness. This is one of three Malbecs from the Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary, from a stony part of the vineyard, hence its name. The wine matured in large oak foudres, and the oak is still perceptible and might need a little more time to get integrated. This tends to be the most austere of the three bottlings, even in the warmer years like 2020, and it shows a little more fruit. It's juicy but beautifully textured with a spicy twist of curry that reminded me of some bottlings from El Enemigo in El Cepillo. It seems to open up slowly in the glass—the violet and berry aromas get complicated by some spice (curry?)—and the palate feels more layered. This is a superb expression of the austere wildness of Gualtallary. 5,700 bottles were filled in December 2021.