Gaucho buyer’s top tips for Argentine evolution

Riesling, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc all offer “safe bets” for Argentina, according to Phil Crozier, wine director at Gaucho.

“There is a sense they should be planting more varieties,” he remarked, declaring: “In Uco Valley I think they are making the best Petit Verdot in the world. It’s so rare to find ripeness and fruit in Petit Verdot, but you get it there, with a shot of pencil lead too.”

As for Cabernet Franc, Crozier observed: “There’s a lot of old Cabernet Franc, 123 year old vines, east of Mendoza in Maipú,” pointing also to the quality of examples emerging from Rio Negro.

For Riesling, Crozier highlighted a vineyard belonging to Luigi Bosca in eastern Mendoza, but also praised the variety’s potential in Rio Negro, where “it’s cooler and with really stoney soil. You get the same rainfall as in Salta, but there’s the canal and river Limay so there’s lots of access to water.”

However, Crozier conceded that many of Argentina’s producers remain “cautious” when it comes to branching beyond Malbec. Caucasia Wine Thinking data to December 2011 shows that at US$38.78 FOB per case, single varietal Malbec commands a higher average price than any other Argentine style.

“Land is getting more and more expensive,” explained Crozier of producers’ hesitation to experiment with other varieties, “and they’re just not that sure about the consumer.”

Nevertheless, Crozier pointed to his own list, which features no fewer than 65 different Malbecs. Despite this focus however, he revealed: “Only about 40% of our sales are Malbec – it’s surprising how people like to try other things.”

Instead, he cited Pinot Noir from Patagonia and Tannat from Salta as particularly popular alternatives to the “cult territory” occupied by Malbec.

As for the evolution of this Argentine flagship variety, Crozier maintained: “For me the future is in blends and single vineyard, single region wines,” arguing: “Mendoza is every bit as sophisticated as Bordeaux and you can get it all through one grape; it’s fascinating.”

Despite this call for a tighter focus on individual terroirs, Crozier insisted: “I don’t think appellations are the answer. There’s no one to control it.” In any case, he argued: “We’re now in a global market – good wine sells, bad wine doesn’t.”

His comments came during an event hosted by DiamAndes, a young addition to winemaking consultant Michel Rolland’s exclusive Clos de los Siete group, based in the Vista Flores sub-region of the Uco Valley.

Owned by Alfred-Alexandre Bonnie of Château Malartic Lagraviere in the Graves, who bought the property in 2006, the export-focused winery is positioning itself as an example of what Argentina can do with these single site Malbecs and Bordeaux blends.

“Vista Flores is all about lavender, roses and black pepper,” explained Crozier, who has just added a number of DiamAndes wines to his list.

In an effort to help customers differentiate between his ever growing array of Malbecs, Crozier now plans to break down its categorisation a stage further, arranging wines by sub-region when he next reprints the list in April.