CUVELIER LOS ANDES
Uco Valley, Argentina
The Cuvelier family’s roots run deep in the world of wine – seven generations deep, to be exact, dating back to 1804 when Henri Cuvelier started out as a wine merchant in the northern French town of Lille. As the years went on, humble beginnings wrought success as they came to oversee the noble Châteaux Léoville Poyferré (second growth) in Saint-Julien and Le Crock in Saint-Estéphe. Despite incredible achievement, the Cuvelier eye has ever been set on the horizon – in the early 1900’s, Paul Cuvelier traveled to Argentina and developed a love for the wines he tasted and a curiosity as to what secrets Bordeaux varietals might reveal at elevation such as Mendoza’s…
In 1998, Bertrand Cuvelier moved on his grandfather’s longtime dream; together with the late famed oenologist Michel Rolland, he founded Cuvelier los Andes in the Tunuyán region of the Uco Valley. While there was clearly experience to spare between them, they recognized how distinct the viticultural demands would be from their home of Bordeaux and enlisted the talents of Adrián Manchón to lead the effort as head winemaker and general manager. Manchón brought with him knowledge of the land itself and how to harness Uco’s extreme conditions. In 2009, Baptiste and Guillaume Cuvelier took over for Bertrand – they remain in charge today.
The 55 hectares of estate grown vineyards sprawl across the high deserts of the Uco Valley at a staggering altitude of 1000 meters, just outside the imposing shadows of the Andes Mountains to the west. Like Bordeaux, the soils here are alluvial: shallow with fine sand, silt, and notably, small, rounded rocks creating ideal drainage conditions, challenging vines and coaxing forth character.
Here, on this wind-swept plateau, if 300mm of rain fall in a year it has been a damp one (on par with some of the driest inhabited regions on Earth). As such, vines’ roots burrow deep into the rock in search of moisture, which they find seeped into the ground from the Tunuyán River as it cuts its way down the mountains. Perhaps the most vital regional feature for viticulture is the diurnal shift; the temperature from day to night can swing an astonishing 50°F with ease and regularly does so. Over the course of a summer, this means incomparable phenolic ripeness, yet perfectly preserved acidity and freshness. Skin thickness is a particularly instructional feature of Uco's ripening capabilities: Cabernet in Bordeaux regularly comes in at .3mm - 1000 meters closer to the sun, that more than doubles, concentrating fruit tannins and preserving acid in the juice within.
All farming is certified organic and biodynamic, a priority of the Cuveliers from the start. Indigenous cover crops are maintained throughout the vineyards, encouraging biodiversity and contributing organic material to the poor soils. The approach to vine training is, of course, manifestly French, drawing on 200 years of know-how when it comes to vineyard management. Vertical shoot positioning, north-south row orientation, and careful canopy management are all implemented both to maximize the effects of and protect against some of the planet’s most intense sunlight. As in Bordeaux, yields are strictly controlled, no different than the family’s Grand Cru Classé bottlings; indeed, the goal has always been to cast Argentine terroir through the Cuveliers’ familiar lens.
Adrián Manchón and Michel Rolland were of similar minds when it came to techniques in the winery: handle the fruit as little as possible, sort rigorously, and stay out of the way of the wine. Grapes are hand-harvested in small crates and loaded into tanks by gravity – no pumps. Fermentation is carried out on indigenous yeasts followed by a post-fermentation maceration and ageing in French oak barrels. In keeping with the mission, the tools are much the same as they are in Bordeaux, but Uco’s penchant for opulent, bursting fruit is brought to the forefront by the grapes themselves.
Wines
Cuvelier los Andes Cabernet Sauvignon
Cuvelier los Andes Malbec
Cuvelier los Andes 'Grand Vin'