Don Rodolfo Tannat 2012
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Wine & Spirits
From vines planted in 2000, this is a fresh style of tannat, aged for a year in stainless steel. The flavors come at you out of darkness, but it's not black; just super tannic. And mouthwatering. There's some minerality that emerges in the finish, along with a red note, like persimmon. Decant it for a thick-cut pork chop.
Other Vintages
2019-
Wilfred
Wong
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James
Suckling
Argentina's major wine regions are located in the western part of the country and are seated along the base of the Andes Mountains. With one of the widest diurnal temperature variations in the world, Argentina's summers can hit as high as 104ºF and nights cooling off to 50ºF. This arid desert-like climate relies on the pollution-free water from the melted glaciers in the Andes in order to naturally irrigate each vineyard. Argentina also has some of the highest altitudes vineyards in the world, with an average altitude of 3,000 feet high. These extreme and strenuous geographic characteristics allow Argentina's vines to really struggle and produce lower yields with higher quality and more concentrated wines.best — of Argentina's wines. Don Rodolfo is one such winery.
Argentina is a country where its people love to express themselves. Embracing art as a language, locals do this through the rich cuisine, vibrant music and eye-catching street art.
This dynamic culture continually inspires on a daily basis and DR Art of the Andes wines embrace this lifestyle in each and every one of its handcrafted wines.
DR Art of the Andes wines are certified in both GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) and GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) by the internationally respected DNV-GL Corporation. A portion of every bottle of Don Rodolfo sold is donated to support a socio-economically diverse group of aspiring Argentinean artists. With this money we are able to cover costs of their art supplies, studio time, and continual education via special workshops, artist lectures and participation in open studios.
Named for its naturally high level of tannins, Tannat is a brooding, rustic, dark red wine that sees its origin in the Madiran region of France. Similar to Malbec’s journey to Argentina from France, Tannat made a similar move in the early 19th century but landed in Uruguay in the hands of Basque settlers. Today Tannat thrives in its warm South American climate, producing a bold, black fruit driven red. Somm Secret—Uruguay producers have the freedom to blend firm Tannat with any other grape whereas Madiran law restricts Tannat’s blending grapes to Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and the indigenous grape, Fer.
With vineyards tretching along the eastern side of the Andes Mountains from Patagonia in the south to Salta in the north, Argentina is one of the world’s largest and most dynamic wine producing countries—and most important in South America.
Since the late 20th century vineyard investments, improved winery technology and a commitment to innovation have all contributed to the country’s burgeoning image as a producer of great wines at all price points. The climate here is diverse but generally continental and agreeable, with hot, dry summers and cold snowy winters—a positive, as snow melt from the Andes Mountains is used heavily to irrigate vineyards. Grapes very rarely have any difficulty achieving full ripeness.
Argentina’s famous Mendoza region, responsible for more than 70% of Argentina’s wine production, is further divided into several sub-regions, with Luján de Cuyo and the Uco Valley most noteworthy. Red wines dominate here, especially Malbec, the country’s star variety, while Chardonnay is the most successful white.
The province of San Juan is best known for blends of Bonarda and Syrah. Torrontés is a specialty of the La Rioja and Salta regions, the latter of which is also responsible for excellent Malbecs grown at very high elevation.