Bodega Chacra Barda Pinot Noir 2015
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Winemaker Notes
Pairs well with roast beef, salmon, swordfish and pastas with meat or seafood sauces.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A fantastic red with ginger, dried strawberry, wet earth and fresh leather aromas and flavors. Full body, silky tannins and a fantastic finish. Superb. Best Barda ever. Drink now.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The entry level, drinkable, fresh and primary 2015 Barda was produced with Pinot Noir grapes from their two flagship vineyards, 1932 and 1955. It fermented in cement vats with indigenous yeasts, including malolactic. Half of the wine was kept in concrete, 20% put in stainless steel and the remaining 30% matured in new and second use French oak barrels for eight months. They consider 2015 one of their finest vintages to date, a year with very cold nights in March, which helped achieve good slow ripeness, with a frost at the end of the month which accelerated the end of the harvest. It had a beautiful nose mixing red and black fruit aromas with a spicy twist and something earthy, very subtle, starting to show some complexity even at this early age. They are using less new oak as they are buying some used barrels from Dujac; the effect of the oak here is really unnoticeable, the wine is all about the grape, with very fine tannins, great acidity and balance. It is supple and tasty, with a savory finish. It has a citric, blood orange-like freshness that is noticeable mostly in the finish. Stunning, and very good value.
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Tasting Panel
Silky and smooth with juicy cherry and pretty aromatics; bright, charming and balanced; made in Patagonia by the scion of the family that owns Sassacaia.
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The climate is dry, with maximum humidity of thirty percent and an average of seven inches of rainfall annually. This aridity, coupled with the natural barrier of the surrounding desert, results in a complete absence of phylloxera and vine diseases. The air is pristine and without pollution, creating tremendous luminosity and purity of sunlight. During the ripening period, in the first quarter of the year, diurnal temperatures vary widely, ranging from an average of 82.4F (28C) during the day and 48.2F (9C) at night. The seasons are precisely defined, with hot summers, cold winters and mild springs and autumns. This consistency of climate enhances consistency of the wine from vintage to vintage.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
One of the most southerly regions on the globe for fine wine production, Patagonia has experienced extraordinary vineyard expansion since the early 2000s.
Patagonia vineyards occupy the lower foothills of the Andes at 1,000 to 1,600 feet. Here cold air drops at night from incredibly steep elevations—the Andes reach well over 15,000 feet in this zone—a phenomenon that produces drastic diurnal shifts. Cold nights contrasted with hot summer days produce grapes with striking color, full ripeness, great finesse and aromatic intensity.
Favored for its luxury brands, the Patagonia wine growing region of Argentina focuses on a diverse array of international varieties: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillón and Viognier among the white grapes, and Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon for reds.