Colome

There are few wine estates in the world quite like Colomé winery. With vineyards that run up to a sky-scraping 3,111 m.a.s.l., Colomé is seriously high altitude. And with that comes an incredible landscape of colourful mountains and clear skies, as well as distinctive wines with precision, concentration and brilliant acidity. Some highlights include the Altura Máxima range from the highest vineyards, with star-bright Sauvignon Blanc, crisp Pinot Noir and complex Malbec, as well as the perfumed Torrontés and Lote Especial Tannat.

This legacy estate was first established in 1831, and is the oldest continuously-running winery of Argentina with a beautiful plot of old vines planted in that same year. But the heart of Colomé today started beating in 2001 when the Hess family bought it and revitalised an abandoned village and community in this remote corner of the Calchaqui Valleys.

Donald and Ursula Hess poured a lot of energy, love and money into bringing running water, reconstructing damaged homes and giving new work opportunities and livelihoods to the families of Colomé village, while also establishing one of the leading wineries of Northern Argentina. A boutique wine lodge, farm to table restaurant and the incredible James Turrell art gallery are the cherry on the cake in Colomé. It is quite the journey to get there, but the experience makes it well worth it.

About Colomé winery

One of the highest wineries in the world, Colome sits in the Upper Calchaquí valleys further into the foothills than Cafayate and ranging from 2,300 to 3,111 meters above sea level. Founded some 180 years ago, Colome is one of the oldest-running wineries in Argentina.

Colome may be historical, but the Hess family have since built a state-of-the-art modern winery with production headed up by French winemaker Thibaut Delmotte. They also bought Amalaya, in the (slightly more accessible!) village of Cafayate. Today Colomé and Amalaya are managed by the second-generation, Larissa and Christophe.

As expected from the region, their Torrontes is top-notch but you should also seek out some their reds to get a flavour of Malbec at altitude. Colome’s vineyards are managed with biodynamic and organic principals, although due to the tricky ants (whose nests are treated with pesticides) they are not certified.