Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard White Bones

Wine Description

White Bones Chardonnay comes from select rows within Block 1 of the Adrianna Vineyard. The wine is fermented and aged in French oak barrels with about two-thirds undergoing malolactic fermentation. The name refers to the soil underneath these rows, which is layered with calcareous deposits and limestone as well as fossilized bones – the remnants of a river that used to pass through the region. 

Remington-Mendoza
Laura Catena sits at a table with a glass of wine
Malbec Grapes
Alejandro Vigil (Chief Winemaker) and Laura Catena Tasting
Malbec Clone in La Piramide Vineyard
Nicolás Catena
Bodega Catena Zapata
Bodega Catena Zapata
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Acclaim
“100% Chardonnay from the ‘White Bones’ plot which is right next to the ‘White Stones’ plot in the Adrianna Vineyard and the differences in these wines really shows diversity of place. There is a distinctive herbal character that cannot be compared to any other herbaceous wine and it gives it a more aromatic quality as well as the wine being more linear on the palate with an intense energy that finishes with citrus peel, white flowers and more of a crumbly limestone. Laura said they are still studying where this herbal note comes from in this plot.”
— Forbes, Oct 2021
“This Bones comes from a high part of the Adrianna Vineyard, about 1,450 meters above sea level. Planted in 1992, these soils are alluvial in origin, but very rich in calcareous residues, fossils that are present in the area currently known as Monasterio. The wine was aged for about 16 months under a thin veil of flor, which lends the wine a very special saline component. This is a wine determined by the chalky soil that produces that austere, vertical sensation. A wine that doesn't seem to be made of fruit, but rather of stones, although unlike Whites Stones, this one seems a bit more succulent, a bit riper, although always in the context of these wines full of minerality.”   (One of the Top 10 Whites of 2021 and one of the Best Whites of the Year)
— Descorchados, Aug 2021
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Vineyard & Production Info
Production area/appellation:
Gualtallary
Vineyard name
The Adrianna Vineyard (Block 1)
Vineyard size
267 acres
Soil composition
Calcareous, Sand, and Stony
Training method
VSP
Elevation:
4,575 feet
Vines/acre:
2200
Yield/acre:
1.2 tons
Exposure:
Northwestern
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Winemaking & Aging
Varietal composition:
100% Chardonnay
Maceration technique:
Battonage
Malolactic fermentation:
Yes
Size of aging container:
225L
Type of oak:
French
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Analytical Data
pH level:
3.2
Acidity:
8.3 g/L
Alcohol:
12.6 %
Residual sugar:
1.8 g/L
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Wine Production

Cold settling for 12 hours in stainless steel tanks at 6ºC. Fermentation in French oak barrels for 45 - 95 days at 16°C. Battonage. Partial malolactic fermentation.  Aged for 12-16 months in 2nd, 3d and 4th use French oak barrels.
 

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About the Vineyard

"White Bones"  makes reference to a spot of vines planted over a patch of gravel on the topsoil, and thick layers of calcareous deposits and limestone in the subsoil. Fossilized animal bones can be found among this layers. These are remains of animals and fish that lived in stream bed area.  There are many theories about why the grapes coming from these rows have such distinctive floral aromatics with an earthy minerality in the nose and palate. It may be related to the minerals in the soil or to the effects that the calcareous deposits have on root penetration.  At this extreme high altitude, the nights are cool, only a few degrees above freezing even in the summer. The night-day temperature difference is between 15 and 20 degrees and the sunlight is more intense because of the altitude.