Nose
The nose offers white stone fruits with a touch of banana and mango, notes of sweet spice and pan grille.
Palate
The mouthfeel is full and rich, but with wonderful freshness, showing ripe pear and fig flavors with a light notes of tropical fruit, delicate floral tones. The finish is long and lingering with wonderful minerality and clean, crisp acidity.
Growing Conditions
The winter of 2004 was cold and dry, with little snow in the Andes mountains. Average temperatures throughout this season were much lower than normal, partly due to the lack of precipitation and low levels of relative humidity.
The high altitude wine country of Mendoza entered spring under similar climatic conditions. Lower than average temperatures and very dry conditions led to an excellent start to the growing season, with very good bud break and vegetative growth. The cooler temperatures throughout early spring led to a slightly later flowering, foretelling the possibility of a later harvest.
Mid spring saw a late frost on November 5th which touched the lower areas of the southern Uco Valley, especially the department of San Carlos.
Late spring witnessed a continuation in the trend of cooler than average temperatures. There were also some light rains during this period which affected the flowering process, leading to a lower than average fruit set. This phenomenon reduced the per plant production, lowering yields and potentially increasing quality.
Summer began with the early arrival of very cold nighttime temperatures. These very low January minimum temperatures led to a rapid and homogenous veraison, with almost all clusters changing color very quickly and uniformly. This color development foretold of the outstanding anthocyanin levels that would be achieved in the harvest of this year’s red varietals.
In addition, this period saw very few days above 34° C (93.2° F), an important threshold in Mendoza. Temperatures below this mark allow for the most efficient photosynthetic activity in the vines, leading to heightened polyphenolic accumulation and excellent malic acid retention in the grapes.
Late summer saw a slight increase in average temperatures. Increased cloudy weather meant that nighttime temperatures were not as low as usual, thereby lifting the overall average slightly. However, maximum temperatures during the day remained below 34° C (93.2° F), allowing the grapes to experience optimum ripening conditions.
The area of Perdriel, some 20 kilometers to the south of the city of Mendoza, experienced a violent hail and thunderstorm on February 14. Many vineyards in the area lost their entire production for the 2005 harvest. In keeping with the isolated nature of these types of storms in Mendoza, Bodega Catena Zapata’s La Pirámide vineyard, which is located only 12 kilometers from Perdriel, did not even receive any precipitation that day.
