Paul Hobbs came to Argentina in the late 1980s in order to help revolutionize Chardonnay in Argentina, and that he did. Not only did he help local winemakers to take great leaps in improving the quality of their white wine by bringing in temperature control and French oak barrels, but he also established his own winery – Viña Cobos – there in 1999. At Viña Cobos he went on to explore the potential of Argentine Chardonnay, earning it critical acclaim internationally. Today Viña Cobos is still at the top of its Chardonnay game, as Amanda Barnes discovers in this tasting and interview with Cobos winemaker Andrés Vignoni.
Interview with Andrés Vignoni, winemaker at Viña Cobos
Amanda: So we are going to taste two of your Chardonnays. Viña Cobos is, I’d say, probably the winery most famous for its Chardonnay in Argentina. Can you tell us about the style of Bramare Chardonnay and how it has evolved over the years?
Andrés: Our style is very related to respecting the variety. But, more than that, what we are looking for is to reflect a sense of place in our Chardonnays.
First, we have to let people understand that Argentina is not just Malbec… and we do have a wonderful foundation with Malbec. So in that sense, we are exploring different places and today we have these two Chardonnays in our top tier called Bramare Vineyard Designate. One of them is from our Arbolitos Vineyard, which is located in Los Chacayes, with colluvial soils with lots of sharp stones and a rocky soil profile where you can find this structure. The texture is super thin, but at the same time, elegant. The pursuit of our Chardonnay philosophy is trying to deliver this balance between fruit, sense of place and elegance.
We have been working a lot with coopers as we try to really develop the correct expression of oak integrated with the Chardonnay. And so our Burgundian philosophy is very linked today with our style of the wine.
The second wine is our Zingaretti estate, which comes from a totally different place in Mendoza called Villa Bastías. It is a place surrounded by hills and is super cold. Here we really keep acidity, minerality and the floral side of Chardonnay but at the same time we get some creaminess, texture and a very long finish on the wine.
So both have complexity, yet they are simple to understand and they deliver a lot of joy!
I absolutely agree in terms of joy! One of the great things about your Bramare line, with the Malbec too, is the great difference you find in these vineyards. We often associate altitude with colder temperatures here in Argentina, but that isn’t always the case. Can you tell us how important the mesoclimate is for these Chardonnay wines?
The mesoclimate is key. For example, Zingaretti Vineyard is also surrounded by hills so all the cool air comes from the mountains and it is stuck there. And this is the last vineyard that we pick, even later than Gualtallary, for example. Or El Peral.
It isn’t just about the altitude, but also about these small spots that can really deliver another dimension. Obviously that’s also really linked with the texture of the wine – not just with the aromas.
We find that Los Chacayes with its sharp stones, more solar influence and a lot of wind, has a much more straight, direct texture than Zingaretti, for example.
Chardonnay in Argentina is something that we are all really getting very excited about and we’re really beginning to see the true potential for great Argentine Chardonnay. Do you have a favourite pairing for these wines?
I really like Chardonnay with empanadas. And with mollejas! Sweetbreads. It’s amazing!
Sweetbreads on the grill with a nice Chardonnay – perfect!
