Casarena winery is one of the most-recognised single vineyard producers in Luján de Cuyo, with a focus on distinctive terroirs in the traditional cradle of Malbec. Another feather to their bow is their beautiful Casa Naoki guest house in the middle of their Naoki vineyard – a highlight of luxury wine tourism in Mendoza.

Within the Casarena range, you’ll find some precise and focused Malbec wines but also some of the region’s top Cabernet Sauvignon. Other highlights are the Cabernet Franc and Brut Nature bubbles. The Dartley family, who own Casarena, also have another line of wines made from Luján de Cuyo – their playful Mythic range, which often focuses on blends.

 

About Casarena and Casa Naoki

Casarena has made it their mission to put not only the quality wines of Luján on the map, but also enamour visitors with the region’s charms through their fine dining restaurant and luxurious wine lodge, Casa Naoki.

The winery is in the heart of Perdriel within the Jamilla vineyard, in a handsomely restored bodega constructed in 1937. Specialising in single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Malbec, among other varieties, the polished wines all come from their four Luján estates which are named after the grandchildren of the family — Naoki, Lauren, Owen and Jamilla.

In the Naoki vineyard in Agrelo you’ll find Casa Naoki, the Dartley family’s sumptuous guest house which can be exclusively hired for a memorable stay with a stunning Andean view and infinity pool that appears to drop off into the vineyard.

 

Visiting Casa Naoki

Staying at Casa Naoki is very much a home-away-from-home experience, only likely better than your own home. A spacious guest house with four bedrooms, the whole house is oriented towards the panoramic mountain view. All the bedrooms have a patio leading you out to the idyllic view, and the Master Bedroom has a jacuzzi with the same view.

The highlight of Casa Naoki is the enormous living area at the heart of the house. An open plan kitchen, dining room and living room combine and all spill out onto the large pool deck with a big asado, outdoor dining table and living area, and an infinity pool that drops off to the fields and vineyards below.

The wine experience is a focal part of any stay at Casa Naoki with a packed wine cellar below ground, and special wine-paired meals available at request. Breakfast is served with Casarena’s bubbles to make sure you start your day right… and while you might want to take advantage of Casa Naoki’s location to explore other nearby wineries, don’t miss out on the tour of the Naoki vineyard which holds many surprises within its folds.

A friendly team of chefs, sommeliers, winemakers and travel experts are always on hand (or at your beck and call) to help make a memorable experience at Casa Naoki. For this reason among many, it’s little surprise that Casa Naoki won best wine hotel on the Best of Mendoza’s Wine Tourism awards.

Read more about staying at Casa Naoki!

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To book your stay at Casa Naoki, you can email them at [email protected]

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About the Casarena vineyards

Casarena owns four estates in Luján de Cuyo which are named after grandchildren of the family: Naoki, Lauren, Owen and Jamilla.

JAMILLA VINEYARD

Jamilla vineyard is located in Perdriel and surrounds the winery building. The vineyard is at 940 meters above sea level and the soil are made up of river bed boulders since it used to be part of the Mendoza River.

NAOKI VINEYARD

Naoki vineyard is located in Agrelo, at 950 meters above sea level. The vineyard is located in an area that offers quite different conditions from other areas in Agrelo with significant proportions of gypsum in the soils, and therefore allows for unique expressions in its wines. This is where Casa Naoki is, but also Casarena’s fascinating ‘elephant’s cemetery vineyard’.

LAUREN VINEYARD

Lauren is located at 918 meters above sea level, in one of the coldest areas of Agrelo. The great thermal amplitude, a wide temperature range between day and night, along with deep, clay soils allows for intense and concentrated wines. Malbec, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc work particularly well here.

OWEN VINEYARD

With old vines planted in 1933, Owen vineyard is located in Agrelo, at 960 meters above sea level. The traditional pergolas are planted on a range of soils, including sand, clay, pebbles and calcareous sediments. Owen’s top wines are Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.

 

Casarena wines

DNA & ICONO

The top wines of Casarena… The DNA collection includes a Cabernet Sauvignon, selected from the best plots of Casarena’s Cabernet vines; a Malbec blended from the very best plots within the vineyards; and an Icono blend composed of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Cabernet Franc.

SINGLE VINEYARD WINES

Casarena’s Single Vineyard line is one of the most emblematic of Luján de Cuyo, pulling into focus certain vineyards and certain single varietals. These are complex and ageworthy wines, and the range includes a Petit Verdot, Malbec and Cabernet Franc from Lauren vineyard, a Malbec from Naoki, a Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay from Owen, and a Malbec from Jamilla.

SINERGY VINEYARD BLENDS

These are three premium blends which each highlight the character of three of Casarena’s vineyards: Jamilla, Lauren and Owen. The blends vary depending on the vineyard: Jamilla is predominantly Malbec, Lauren is predominantly Cabernet Franc, and Owen is predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon.

ESTATE/RESERVADO

The Estate line, or Reservado line in Argentina, is a premium range of wines which highlights Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, emblematic varieties for Casarena and Argentina, and also includes a red blend.

AREYNA

Areyna is an estate lines of wines celebrating easy to drink Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and Torrontés – which is Casarena’s only wine from outside of Luján de Cuyo, made in Cafayate in Northern Argentina.

505

505 is the number on the street where Casarena winery is located in Luján de Cuyo, and this is the entry-level range of wines which includes a Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and red blend.

About Mythic Wines

The Dartley family also own Mythic Wines, a brand of wines from Luján de Cuyo which includes some playful blends (both white and red) and a carbonic maceration Malbec. To find out more about Mythic wines, visit the separate website.

 

About the winemaker, Martina Galeano 

Martina Galeano is a Mendoza native but spent some time in South Africa and most recently in California where she studied a Masters in oenology at UC Davis. She is now winemaker for Casarena and works closely with agronomist Pablo Ceverino.

Together they are both focusing on soil studies and parcelation of the vineyards in order to look for specific expressions of their different Luján de Cuyo terroirs.

Here Martina Galeano explains the fascinating story behind one of their new, yet old, vineyards in Naoki: