Ayni is the quechua name of a principle of reciporcity practised for centuries by the andean cultures, it means in order to receive something you first have to give. Ayni is also the name of our most special vineyard, located in Paraje Altamira one of the best appelations within Uco Valley in Mendoza.
Argentina has a history of sparkling wine production since the early 1960’s.
Tasting Notes: Aged for 18 months on its lees before disgorgement. It’s a creamy with a nice toast aroma. It is made in a well-balanced style, with fine bubbles and a dry, palate-cleansing finish.
Vineyards: 100% Altamira in the Uco Valley subregion
Soil type: Sandy loam over calcium carbonate coated gravels, 30 to 50 cm deep
Grapes: 100% Pinot Noir
Average age of the vines: 10 years
Winemaking: Methode Traditionnelle (Champenoise). Aged sur lattes for 18 months. Made following the tratidional method, fermentation goes until it gets totallay dry. No liquor is added to keep the freshnes, elegance and purity of is clean profile.
A versatile wine, good on its own or paired with any food.
"An impressive first release for this all-Pinot Noir bubbly from Paraje Altamira, aged for 18 months on its lees before disgorgement. It’s a creamy, bready, well-balanced style, with fine bubbles and a dry, palate-cleansing finish. A fizz to watch. 2017-22"
- Tim Atkin (Argentina Special Report 2017), 92 pts
"Perhaps with the same sort of structural power that Altamira reds possess, this sparkling rosé shows something immutable in body, lively texture, bracing acidity. The wine spent 18 months on the lees and this, no doubt, provides flavor complexities well beyond the fruit, but still the fruit predominates with intense aromas, substantial, and crisp, lively acidity. If what you’re looking for is a sparkler for carpaccio or roast beef, this is it."
- Descorchads 2018, 94 pts
This vineyard is situated at over 3,000 feet in altitude in Valle de Uco, and the vines are over seventy years old. This light soil is sandy with some silt, is very permeable and has boulders and a broken layer of limestone at a depth of 2.5 feet. Traditional irrigation is fed by water from the Andes Mountains. Temis has the coldest climate of all Alta Vista’s terroirs. Nights are quite cool and days are warm and soft, with constant breezes that help to keep the vines and grapes healthy. The grapes have a slow, gradual cycle of ripeness that is balanced and ideal. Planted in 1942, the selection massale vines are characterized by small clusters with small, compact grapes.
Review:
There’s a touch of bark, grilled Mediterranean spice savoriness to the rich but fresh blackberries, salted black plums and graphite notes. Pretty saline and flavorful on the palate. The tannins are powerful yet fine-grained. A structured and characterful malbec from old vines in El Cepillo.
-James Suckling 94 Points
Avatar Malbec is 100% Malbec.
Aged in 100% French Oak barrels for 4 months and then 6 months in the bottle beofre release
Presents a vibrant red color with glints of bordeaux. Great aromatic intensity. It expresses in a very fresh way, with red fruits and a remarkable sweetness. In the mouth it’s balanced with round and sweet tannins, rich and with a marked acidity.
Coming from Agrelo district.
Average of the vines is 25 years old.
Soil type: Alluvial and sandy soils with a big amount of rocks just besides the Mendoza river. This is one of the most prestigious terroirs in Argentina.
Winemaking: Crushing, destemming and maceration pre-fermentative at 11ºC for 24 hours. Alcoholic fermentation in tanks. 4 weeks of skin contact maceration. Aged in French oak barrels for 4 months, Malolactic fermentation in contact with fine lees.
Wine was slightly filtered before bottling.
Bressia Monteagrelo Malbec is made from 100 percent Malbec.
Aged in French oak barrels for 12 months. No filtration and no fining.
Bressia Monteagrelo combines the soul of each varietal, its intimate relationship with the origin and its deep roots with a unique terroir in the world...Monteagrelo is our family of wines and, as in any family, each one expresses their own identity and varietal personality that makes them unforgettable and unrepeatable." - Walter Bressia
Monteagrelo Malbec is sourced from vineyards in Tupungato, La Consulta & Agrelo. Planted 6,500 plants per hectare.
Attractive and intense red-colored wine with purple tones. It exhibits ripe red and black fruit aromas, mixed with vanilla, chocolate and coffee nuances. Good concentration, great structure, delicate tannins and a long, harmonious finish.
Review:
"The 2020 Malbec Monteagrelo was aged for 12 months in French oak. Purple in the glass. The intense aromas feature plum liqueur, cassis and hints of blackberry in an oaky, cigar box frame. The palate is broad and full-bodied with a channeled but voluminous, grippy flow. - Joaquín Hidalgo"
- Antonio Galloni's Vinous (January 2023), 92 pts
This wine is floral, exuberant, with lengthy smooth tannins, and metallic notes.
This cuvée takes its name from a small parcel of the Adrianna Vineyard that is completely covered with oval white stones and was the site of an ancient riverbed. The abundant stones provide optimal drainage and extreme temperatures. They absorb heat and moderate the nights, but also function like ice cubes after a very cold night. Stony soil Malbecs tend to be extremely aromatic, rich and luxurious, just like the River Malbec from Adrianna. This wine can be enjoyed young or aged for decades.
Pair with grilled meats.
Review:
Wild blackberries, pine cones, bark, chili chocolate, cracked pepper, cloves, iodine and crushed stones on the nose. Full-bodied with firm, creamy tannins. Lovely coolness and minerality to the dark fruit. Powerful, too. Try in 2026.
-James Suckling 98 Points
This wine is floral, exuberant, with lengthy smooth tannins, and metallic notes.
This cuvée takes its name from a small parcel of the Adrianna Vineyard that is completely covered with oval white stones and was the site of an ancient riverbed. The abundant stones provide optimal drainage and extreme temperatures. They absorb heat and moderate the nights, but also function like ice cubes after a very cold night. Stony soil Malbecs tend to be extremely aromatic, rich and luxurious, just like the River Malbec from Adrianna. This wine can be enjoyed young or aged for decades.
Pair with grilled meats.
Review:
There is an usual stony austerity in the 2021 Adrianna Vineyard River, cropped from a cold year when the full clusters fermented in concrete with a slightly shorter maceration and an élevage in a 2,000-liter oak foudre and the rest in stainless steel. It has a moderate 13.4% alcohol with very high acidity (8.2!) and a low pH (3.37), incredible parameters of freshness. The wine was closed and took time to take off in the glass, revealing a very elegant and subtle personality, with the silky texture of the very fine tannins, pristine aromas and flavors and a sense of harmony that was moving. It's powerful but extremely elegant in that rare combination of clout and energy, a wine of light, aerial, with some ethereal qualities, delicate and refined. This combines the cool place and high altitude, the cool year and the stony soils, to deliver a stunning Malbec that goes well beyond the variety. Bravo!
-Wine Advocate 100 Points
Ayni Malbec is made from 100% Malbec.
"This wine is the first result of our Terroir project with Pedro Parra. The understanding of optimum soil conditions for Malbec, the segmentation of the best soils available in our Agrelo property and in our supplier's, and the management of irrigation and ripeness for the specific soil profile has produced grapes of great expression and quality. The concentration and tannin profile of the wine has allowed us to mature it for 24 months in new French Oak barrels, to develop complexity and structure. Ayni 2009 has been bottled in June 2011. After 6 months of settling in bottles, we believe it is ready to be enjoyed. However, we are confident age will reveal its fantastic potential."
"The maiden 2011 Chakana Ayni is a pure Malbec selected from the vineyard that is aged for 12 months in mainly new French oak. It has a crisp, more opulent bouquet that the Estate Blend with macerated dark cherries, blueberry and a hint of iodine. The palate is silky smooth with high-toned black cherries, damson and fresh fig flavors. It is bold and more extroverted than the Estate Blend, though perhaps without the same heightened degree of finesse. Still, this is an impressive Malbec. Drink 2013-2020."
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Neal Martin, Issue#203, 30 October 2012), 93 pts
Vineyards location: 50% Agrelo (Lujan de Cuyo) and 50% Vistaflores (Valle de Uco), Mendoza, Argentina
Grape varietal: Malbec
Age of the vines: 8 years
Irrigation: Drip
Yield: 6 780 kg per hectare
Harvest: Manual
Maceration: 4 days cold soaking below 10°C in stainless steel tanks
Alcoholic fermentation: 80% of the wine in stainless steel tanks for 15 days with wild yeasts, 20% of the wine in 225-liter closed French oak barrels
Malolactic fermentation: Yes
Ageing: 24 month in new French oak barrels
Alcohol: 15%
PH: 3.60
Total Acidity: 6.75 g/L
Residual Sugar: 2.98
Color: Deep ruby red with violet hints
Nose: Complex and intense, features black berries, cherries and plum, with delicate floral notes and spices.
Mouth: Balanced and fresh, full bodied with good lenght of spices
Serving Temperature: 16°C - 18°C
The Ayni Estate
Ayni is produced in a state-of-the-art winery, Chakana, built with the purpose of achieving outstanding quality.
Chakana winery was founded by Juan Pelizzatti on May 2nd, 2002. Juan was driven to enter the wine industry first and foremost by his passion for wine, and also by the desire to invest his time and money on a product of agriculture. Although Juan did not know it at the time, the company was founded on the same day the Chakana was celebrated on the Andes highlands: on that same day, the Southern Cross (the Chakana for the Inca people) becomes vertical in the night Andean sky.
Juan's mission is to create an integral experience to introduce world consumers to the taste and culture of the Andes. His vision is to become one of the top 20 exporters of wine from Argentina, by consistently offering outstanding value for money.
Wine is currently produced in four different levels at Chakana, by winemaker Gabriel Bloise:
Entry Level: Maipe
Reserve Level: Maipe Reserve, Cueva de las Manos, Nuna
Estate Selection
Ayni
The winemaking process is focused on treating the grapes with great care and with strict control of every step of the production.
Wines are designed under the responsibility of the renowned international wine consultant Alberto Antonini.
The winery is located on a 150 ha. estate, 34 km South of the city of Mendoza, in Agrelo, Lujan de Cuyo.
The grapes grown are 35 year-old Malbec, Bonarda and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Deep and textured soils facilitate plant development and confer great body and structure to the wines.
The year-long sunny and dry conditions allow almost organic viticulture practices. The outstanding feature includes a great daily thermal amplitude, with mild days and cold nights, permitting a particular richness of polifenols that improves the wines flavors and color.
A drip irrigation system has been set up to achieve a precise control of the vegetative cycle and a rational use of water. Waters are processed and used in the vineyards.
The Ayni Vineyards
Chakana sources grapes from their own four estates:
Agrelo
Acreage: 150 ha, 120 ha with vineyards
70 ha entry level
40 ha reserve level
10 ha estate & ayni
Acreage by varietal at Agrelo Estate:
Malbec: 50 ha
Cabernet Sauvignon: 30 ha
Syrah: 10 ha
Bonarda: 10 ha
Tannat: 2,5 ha
Petit Verdot: 2.5 ha
Cabernet Franc: 1.5 ha
Aspirant Bouchet: 2.5 ha
Ancellotta: 2 ha
Sauvignon Blanc: 4 ha
Viognier: 2.5 ha
Chardonnay: 2.5 ha
Wine Profile: Medium bodied, elegant, fresher fruit. Round tannin on gravels.
Terroir: Very heterogeneous – deep clay to sandy clay gravels; cool climate
Altamira I
Acreage: 15 ha, Malbec high density. Planted in 2010, not in production
Wine Profile: Full bodied, impressive tannic structure and roundness, spicy and complex.
Terroir: Sandy clay gravel, limestone; cooler climate
Altamira II
Acreage: 36 ha, 26 ha with vineyards
20 ha malbec, estate and ayni level
4 ha chardonnay, entry level and reserve
2 ha pinot noir (used for sparkling wine)
Wine Profile: Medium bodied, elegant, fresher fruit. Round tannin on gravels.
Terroir: Very heterogeneous – deep clay to sandy clay gravels; cool climate
Terrada
Acreage: 21 ha, all in vines
100% malbec, old vines, high density
Reserve – Estate Selection
Wine Profile: Complex, ripe fruit, medium bodied, elegant.
Terroir: Sandy clay gravels, 70cm. soil depth, Some limestone; warmer climate.
They also source wines from contract suppliers in Ugarteche and Medrano, for entry level wines, and in Vista Flores, for Estate Selection & Ayni levels.
Fenocchio DOC Barbera d'Alba Superiore Bussia is made from 100 percent Barbera.
The color is a deep ruby red with garnet reflections. It has a rather intense bouquet, with scents typical of the vine and a full bodied and dry flavor, with a distinct and pleasing acidity. It becomes mature with aging, acquiring a full and balanced flavor.
Parcel is 2.5 hectares (6.2 acres) planted at 300 meters above sea level.
It pairs well with red and white meats, tagliatelle pasta and cheeses.
Avennia Cabernet Franc Champoux Vineyard is made from 100% Cabernet Franc.
This very limited bottling shows the compelling potential of Cabernet Franc from a top vineyard. Though it’s often used as a spice in Avennia's Bordeaux blends, this wine, from the legendary Champoux Vineyard, has its own unique character and complexity that convinced them to feature it alone.
Review:
A stellar Cabernet Franc. Gorgeous, effusive aromas of roasted hatch pepper, smoked sea salt, dried violets and candied red fruit. The palate is nicely integrated but will knit together further with time. Red-fruited and full with pomegranate molasses, tart cherries and savoury notes of smoky sage. Beautiful.
- 96 points, Decanter