With vines grown near the little town of Mainqué in the Upper Río Negro Valley, (Patagonia’s finest enclave for wine) Aniello is a relatively small venture encompassing old pre-phylloxera Malbec vines and a winery originally established in 1927. (In fact, the first ever vine plantings in Argentina were planted in Patagonia.)
The team at Aniello have completely renovated the old, beautiful little winery and have breathed new life into the vineyards. The wines themselves represent the modern face of Patagonia – fresh and juicy with a touch of untamed wildness and beautiful concentration. We are delighted to bring you these unique, lovely wines from Patagonia.
Production
The grapes are hand-harvested at the estate in Mainqué, upper Rio Negro Valley, and then they go through a cold maceration. Fermentation takes place in small concrete tanks
in a slow, cool temperature-controlled process, with 30% of the cluster. We use both
indigenous and selected yeasts. Malolactic fermentation also takes place in tanks.
Tasting Notes
Opinions that Argentina’s finest Pinot comes from Patagonia are not entirely unfounded, though increasingly contestable with some great wines coming out of Mendoza these days. The Patagonian wines boast the oldest vines in the country and that’s a good start, but many of them are eye-wateringly expensive, unlike this little mid-price beauty, which is far more down to earth. It’s probably fair to say the style is more rustic than polished, with some lovely wild red fruit and forest floor character on the nose. Happily, there is no ‘jamminess’ whatsoever and the fruit is gently worked to create a supple generosity that is really well balanced with acidity and juicy tannins.
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