Zorzal - Pinot Noir Terroir Unico 2024
Price: $21.99
6+ Price: $15.99 / btl
| Producer | Zorzal |
 | |
| Country | Argentina |
| |
| Varietal | Pinot Noir |
| |
| Vintage | 2024 |
| |
| Sku | 01539 |
| |
| Size | 750ml |
| |
|
Zorzal is a young winery, created in 2008 with the objective of showing the terroir of Gualtallary, Tupungato in the Uco Valley, Argentina. The winery is quite simple, and they are championing the fermentation and aging of wines in egg-shaped cement vats, a trend that seems to be catching in Argentina and Chile. They are planting vineyards and also sourcing grapes from small growers (maximum three hectares) for whom they work the vineyards. The origin of the Michelini family is a traditional blend of Spanish and Italian blood: their mother is from Mallorca and although their father was born in Argentina, the grandparents from his side were grape-growers from Italy. Gerardo Michelini, the eldest son, worked for Banca March in Mallorca for four years, and with the money he earned there, he bought the land for their vineyards in 2005. He finally started making wine in 2008. All wines from Zorzal come from Gualtallary, at 1,400 meters above sea level (the vineyards there range from 1,200 to 1,700 meters), where the soils are very rich in chalk, very poor, the climate is cool and sun radiation is quite strong. Juan Pedro “Juanpi” is the winemaker. Matias, the other brother is also a winemaker. As far as how the wines are produced, Juanpi selects the stems on the sorting table, and takes away the greener ones. This is like a big experimental center, they love trying new things. They are in search of understanding and interpreting their terroir. The oldest vineyard in Gualtallary is 16 years old (Adrianna vineyard, planted by Catena), so this is a very young region. They started using 500-liter barrels a couple of years ago. They work on a non-intervention basis, both in the winery and in the vineyards. They allow the plants to grow and the vineyard is healthy, they never do green harvest or clipping of leaves. They control yields, but just as you should not overproduce (they never do more than 8,000 kilos per hectare), very low yields are also dangerous. All reds are fermented in egg-shaped concrete vats (16,000 liter). They designed the eggs themselves with the help of their father, who is an engineer. They like the egg-shaped vats because they find temperatures are very stable during fermentation, keeping at 22 to 24 degrees C. Talking about the different years, they told me they like 2013 very much, because it was a cooler year, which kept the acidity and freshness. The Michelini brothers are intelligent, innovative and creative, they like to experiment and cross the lines. These are refreshing wines and people, fun and full of energy.
Vinous Media: 91 Points
"The 2024 Pinot Noir Terroir Unico is aromatically pure, with sour cherry and red cherry notes over a base of rosehip and rose petal. The expression is clean and vivid. With fine-grained grip and good intensity, it finishes with a compact touch. The 2024 is a glou-glou Pinot with excellent fruit and flavor."
James Suckling: 91 Points
"This shows red fruit alongside a bright, herbal note. The palate is medium- to full-bodied with tightly delineated fruit and supple tannins. Approachable, balanced and easy to enjoy. Drink now."
Vintages and ratings subject to change at any time.
All pricing and availability subject to change.
Artwork does not necessarily represent items for sale.
