Trapiche unveils Argentinian coastal wines

By Andrew Catchpole

Published: 22 March, 2017

Grupo Penaflor has opened a new frontier for Argentinian wines with the launch of its Trapiche Costa & Pampa range from Chapadmalal on the Atlantic coast.

With Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Riesling and a sparkling Chardonnay-Pinot among the first wines produced from this 17ha vineyard, the label marks a first for Argentinian wine, which until now has been confined to well know inland sites such as Mendoza, Salta and Patagonia.

Speaking at Prowein, where the Costa & Pampa wines were unveiled, Grupo Penaflor's marketing manager for Europe, Marta Martinelli, said that the project aimed to show a "new Argentina", in contrast to the Malbec-dominated production from Mendoza.

"We are looking for something different from Malbec and full-bodied wines, which is why we took the decision to plant on the coast, four to six years ago," said Martinelli.

"We are aiming for purity and freshness in the wines, with less fruit and more influence from the cool Atlantic, which is why we chose these varieties, and the aim is to focus on premium wines, with small production."

The first commercial bottling sees just 3,000 bottles of each variety allocated to UK importer Enotria&Coe, with Costa & Pampa joining a growing number of new styles and varieties that Grupo Penaflor has been introducing in a move to shift perception as to the diversity that Argentina can offer.

"Malbec continues to be an incredible important variety for us and Argentina and the UK is a very good market for us, but we want to show that Argentina makes other premium wines, with other varieties and styles, also at a premium level," said Martinelli.

Under its host of established and new labels, spread across its seven wineries, Grupo Penaflor has been planting and championing varieties as diverse as Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Semillon, Chenin and Albarino, along with now established indigenous offerings such as El Esteco Old Vines Criolla, from vines up to 100 years old at 1,700 metres and above in Salta.

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