Pacheco Pereda, Familia de Vinos Organic Fairtrade Pinot Grigio

Pacheco Pereda, Familia de Vinos Organic Fairtrade Pinot Grigio 2023

PRODUCER

In 2010 Pacheco Pereda was founded in Mendoza by Alejandro Bulgheroni with the aim of developing sustainable viticulture in Argentina. This vision has resulted in one of Argentina’s largest organic-certified vineyard holdings. The name ‘Pacheco Pereda’ nods to 20th-century migrant families who arrived in Argentina to establish farms before industrial agriculture existed here.

Their vineyards are in the Luján de Cuyo region, split between 231 hectares in Finca Alto Agrelo, planted between 980 and 1200 metres above sea level, and 99 hectares in Finca Pedemonte at 740 metres. Back in 2010, the team carried out a vast soil-mapping exercise across the vineyards, digging five hundred pits and using electric conductivity technology. By understanding the different soil textures, and assessing soil drainage capacity, they split the vineyard into 74 individual plots, matching the most appropriate variety and planting density to each individual plot. Organic certification followed, together with the introduction of natural corridors through the vineyards to improve biodiversity. The winery is also part of the initiative ‘4 per 1000’, launched at the COP21 climate change conference, which commits to promoting and implementing healthy soils that can trap carbon and reduce its impact on climate change.

Winemaker Hernan Rinaldini and consultant renowned consultant Alberto Antonini have employed a similarly thorough approach in the winery. The Pacheco Pereda range consists of three organically certified tiers, ‘Familia de Vinos’, ‘Estirpe’ and ‘Linaje’. The ‘Familia de Vinos’ Pinot Grigio and Malbec are sourced from parcels with the highest clay content, with excellent water retention capacity. These parcels are planted at a higher density resulting in the same yield per vine as other parts of the estate, but a higher yield per hectare. The ‘Familia de Vinos’ Pinot Grigio is sourced from a 22-hectare single plot in the Finca Pedemonte vineyard, which Pacheco Pereda have been replanting with Pinot Grigio since 2015. Stainless steel fermentation preserves fresh aromatics and delicate fruit, producing a bright stone fruit and floral character. The ‘Familia de Vinos’ Malbec is sourced from the lower parcels of the Finca Alto Agrelo vineyard, planted at 1,100 metres above sea level. The grapes are fermented in stainless steel with 50% of the blend aged in used French oak for two months. The resulting fresh and scented wine boasts a generous red and black fruit character with smooth tannins.

Pacheco Pereda’s ‘Estirpe’ range comes from Alto Agrelo’s higher parcels, planted at an elevation of 1,200 metres, where the deep limestone subsoils create wines with greater intensity and finesse. The ‘Estirpe’ Chardonnay is fermented in stainless steel and 15% of the wine is aged in a mixture of used 500-litre French oak barrels and 3,500-litre foudres to add texture and weight. Similarly, both the ‘Estirpe’ Cabernet Franc and ‘Estirpe’ Malbec are fermented in stainless steel after which 30% of the wine is aged in a combination of used French oak barrels and 3,500 litre foudres to provide structure and richness. The Cabernet Franc has a bright black fruit profile with notes of pepper and structured, integrated tannins, whereas the Malbec has a lifted violet nose and a core of juicy plum and red fruit flavours. Pacheco Pereda’s ‘Linaje’ Malbec is sourced from parcels at the highest point of the Alto Agrelo vineyard where the deep soils contain the highest percentage of rocks. Fermented in stainless steel, the wine is then aged in a mixture of used French oak foudres and 3,000-litre concrete eggs for 14 months. The resulting wine presents complex notes of red fruit, plum and spice with velvety tannins and a persistent finish.

TASTING NOTES & TECHNICAL DETAILS