2002

CARO

Mendoza, Argentina

The idea of a partnership between the Rothschild and the Catena families was born in 1999. The Catena family has been producing wines for three generations, their vast knowledge of the high altitude terroirs of Mendoza has ranked them amongst Argentina’s most reknown Malbec producers. With Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) unparalleled knowhow in producing great Cabernet Sauvignon, their aim is to produce a wine combining French and Argentinian cultures and the two signature grapes of both families.

The vintage

2002 was an excellent climatic year in Mendoza between veraison and harvest time.
Dry winter, sunny during summer, short storms in February butwithout consequences for the grapes.
Harvested by hand in very good conditions. Malbec was picked-up from the 25th March to the 15th April and the Cabernet sauvignon from the 1st to the 20th April.

Location

Nestled at the foothills of the snowcapped Andes mountains, Mendoza is known as the best wine producing region in Argentina. With vines planted on high plateaux between 800 and 1200m above sea level, Mendoza’s vineyards are known as the highest in the world. Sheltered from the rain by the mountains to the West and the Pampa to the East, the region is very arid. Mendoza wines draw their character from an exceptional sun exposure and wide temperature variations between night and day.

Terroir

Malbec grapes come from Vistalba, La Consulta, and Gualtallary, from vineyards with more than 30 years old, situated from 800 to 1400 meters in altitude. Cabernet sauvignon come from Agrelo and Tupungato from 20 years old vineyards localised from 950 to 1150 meters in altitude.

Winemaking

CARO is made with the utmost care, just like our Bordeaux Grands Crus. Grapes were carefully hand-selected before being de-stemmed and crushed, with fermentation carried out in stainless steel tanks using selected yeasts and traditional techniques such as pumping over. The alcoholic fermentation lasted between 9 and 12 days, followed by maceration times of 25 to 35 days for Cabernet Sauvignon and 12 to 18 days for Malbec. Malolactic fermentation was completed 100% in stainless steel tanks. The wine was then aged for 17 months in French oak barrels, 60% new and 40% second use, before being bottled between the 19th and 20th of November, 2003.

Grapes

60 %

Cabernet sauvignon

40 %

Malbec

Tasting

Beautiful dark color.
Strong nose, grilled and vanished, raspberries and black sherry aromas.
In mouth, fruity, dense, with a long finish. Great freshness and nice fruit expression.
A rich and balanced wine with mature and gorgeous tannins.