Al Este Bodega y Viñedos is a

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, ...

in Médanos,

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. It consists of vineyards (in owned lands that exceed ) and an adjacent winery, located south of the city of Buenos Aires on the southern tip of the

Buenos Aires province Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...

. The project has been developed under the direction of the Italian wine maker

Alberto Antonini Alberto Antonini (born 10 June 1959) is an Italian oenologist and grower-producer and a consultant to a large number of wineries in various countries including Italy, the U.S., Argentina, Canada, Chile, Uruguay, Armenia and Australia. Career Alb ...

.winesur.co
Buenos Aires is also interested in wine, written by Ma. Soledad Gonzalez on 8/19/2008
wikio.e
Ahora se hace vino también en Buenos Aires, elaborado por Alberto Antonini “Buenos Aires is now also producing wine, made by Alberto Antonini”
In its first submission to a wine contest, Al Este was awarded a silver medal in the White Wine category in the 2009

Decanter World Wine Awards ''Decanter'' is a wine and wine-lifestyle media brand. It includes a print and digital magazine, fine wine tasting events, a news website, a subscription website - ''Decanter Premium'', and the ''Decanter World Wine Awards''. The magazine, publish ...

, the world's largest wine contest, celebrated in London. Al Este's award-winning wine is recommended by Decanter in sixth position as one of the top chardonnays in 2009.decanter.co
"Recommendations - Decanter World Wine Awards 2009: the top 10s, 20s, and more... - Top 26 Chardonnays under £10"
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History

In the early 20th century several European immigrants arrived to Médanos and brought the wine making tradition with them. Although at some point a multitude of small growers planted a combined surface of approximately 200 hectares of vineyards, they were unable to successfully complete the wine making process given lack of scale, inadequate technology and the country's ups and downs which led to their disappearance.wikio.e
Pusimos en marcha la vinicultura en Buenos Aires, written by Mauricio Runno on 08/04/08 “We started winemaking in Buenos Aires”
The Médanos

terroir (, ; from ''terre'', "land") is a French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, these conte ...

, that had traditionally been dedicated to garlic and pastures, has striking similarities to

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in terms of its soil, weather conditions and proximity to the sea. More recently, the idea of starting a wine project in Médanos got reignited as a result of a trip to France which provided renewed confidence in the terroir's potential.lanacion.com.a
Viñedos en los Médanos, written by Oscar Baltian, LA NACION 9/30/2006 “Vineyards in the meadows”
In 2000, a hectare and a half was planted on an experimental basis with nine grape varietals. In a second stage, after analyzing the obtained quality standards for each grape variety at the

Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria The National Agricultural Technology Institute ( es, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria), commonly known as INTA, is an Argentine federal extension agency in charge of the generation, adaptation and diffusion of technologies, knowledge ...

(INTA), 25 additional hectares were planted mainly with six varietals.

Grape varieties

Al Este produces several

varietals A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

. Red:

Malbec Malbec () is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins, and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. In France, plantations of Malbec are n ...

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebanon' ...

Merlot Merlot is a dark blue–colored wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of ''merle'', the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the ...

Tannat Tannat is a red wine grape, historically grown in South West France in the Madiran AOC, and is now one of the most prominent grapes in Uruguay, where it is considered the "national grape". Tannat is also grown in Argentina, Australia, Brazil ...

Cabernet Franc Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire's Chinon. In addition to being us ...

White:

Chardonnay Chardonnay (, , ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern French wine, France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from English wine, Englan ...

Sauvignon blanc is a green-skinned grape variety that originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French words ''sauvage'' ("wild") and ''blanc'' ("white") due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in ...

Vineyards and winery

The vineyards are located at 39 degrees latitude south, where

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and gl ...

and the Pampas converge, approximately 40 km from the Atlantic Ocean.fortuna.com
El vino que llegó del mar “The wine that arrived from the sea”
Windy springs help develop thicker skins that contribute to the intense color of these wines. The geological foundation of the Médanos region is

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, leading to a soil structure that is heavy in

calcium Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to ...

. The soil has high

sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class of s ...

content, which doesn't retain as much humidity, and as a consequence this

absorbs and liberates heat faster creating a large temperature range which favors the development and growth of grapes. Topography: Flatland with meadows (médanos) Soil type: Sandy over a calcareous plate Irrigation system: Dripping Frost protection: Water spraying by aspersion Harvesting and grape selection: Manual Plant support system: Espalier The winery produces red and white wines, which are aged in French and American oak and in bottles in its underground cellars. It is the first company to grow, produce and sell premium wines in the

Domaine Al Este

Domaine Al Este is a 290 hectares

located in Médanos, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. Developed by Al Este, it was the result of a careful analysis and screening of land in this new terroir that was particularly apt for the growth of vineyards dedicated to the production of premium wines. The vineyards are located at 39 degrees latitude south, where the

and

Pampa The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazil ...

converge, approximately 40 km from the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. Topography: Flatland with meadows (médanos) Soil type: Sandy over a calcareous plate Weather: Oceanic influence, with a windy Spring Rainfall: 500mm per year

References

External links