▴ Zuccardi Fósil 2019
The first time I tasted this wine was at Prowein, the world’s largest wine fair, in Germany. To say it stood out is an understatement--it totally absorbed me, true fine wine, definitely world-class. If I had tasted it blind I would have thought it was a great Chablis. Shortly after tasting it, I bumped into Patrick McGrath MW, Managing Director of Hatch Mansfield, importers of Taittinger and Louis Jadot. I immediately told him all about it and as I waxed lyrical his smile became broader and broader: He had just signed up the agency. It is made by incredibly talented Sebastian Zuccardi from a vineyard in the Estancia Place within the IG San Pablo, Tunuyán, Valle de Uco at 1400 metres elevation in the foothills of the Andes. The grapes are direct pressed and the wine is fermented with native yeasts in concrete vessels, without malolactic fermentation, and then aged in concrete and in 500-litre French oak barrels. As with all Sebastian Zuccardi’s wines, there is focus, energy, poise and a purity that holds its own with the best of Burgundy. Price around £45 Elicité, Bordeaux Index.
Dec 2020, SK