PURO UNO BT G CUVEE
The high desert terrain of Mendoza that abuts the Andes Mountains seems a world apart from the gentle green hills of Champagne’s Montagne de Reims. Remarkably this stark, arid landscape is capable of producing world class sparkling wines that rival, rather than mimic, those of Champagne. Here winegrowers can position themselves up and down the mountainsides in order to find the ideal microclimate for a broad range of grape varieties. The wide day-night temperature differential, the well-drained alluvial soils and the careful use of snowmelt irrigation provides an ideal environment for viticulture. For this sparkler, American winemaker Frank Baroudi sourced his fruit from mature vines (20-25 years old) situated at elevation of 5,000 feet near the eastern base of the imposing (21, 489 ft.) Mt. Tupungato. For his Grand Cuvée Baroudi blended hand-harvested Pinot Noir (75%) and Chardonnay (25%) grapes with a low average yield of 2.4 tons per acre. Full malolactic fermentation was achieved with indigenous bacteria. This sparkler was aged on its lees for three years prior to disgorgement this past February. The result is extroverted New World-styled bubbly that opens with ebullient aromas and flavors of pippin apples, biscuit dough, allspice and lemon curd. While very Brut with a low dosage (6.5g/l), this sparkler possesses a creamy mouthfeel buoyed with enough acidity to keep things interesting. The finish, which is nicely tapered and impeccably pure, reveals traces of crushed granite that bespeak its mountain origins.
