Bodega Chacra Barda Pinot Noir, Patagonia, Argentina

Piero Incisa della Rocchetta, owner of Bodega Chacra, is a scion of the aristocratic winemaking family behind Tuscany's groundbreaking Sassicaia. In Patagonia, however, Piero's ambitions are focused on making world-class Pinot Noir.

Bodega Chacra is located in the Rio Negro Valley of northern Patagonia, 620 miles south of Buenos Aires, and roughly equidistant west to east from the Andes Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. The arid climate of the region coupled with the natural barrier of the surrounding desert, results in a complete absence of phylloxera and vine diseases. In 2004 Piero purchased the first of Bodega Chacra's vineyards, a property with an existing, though abandoned, vineyard planted in 1932. The vineyard's pale, dry, porous soils are dominated by gravel and coarse alluvial pebbles with significant limestone content. “Barda”, which means "The Ridge," is the second wine of the estate and a blend of components from the single-vineyard wines as well as wine from their recently planted, ten-acre vineyard on the original 1932 property.

This wine is 100% Pinot Noir aged for 11 months in French oak barrels with lovely aromas of black cherry, cola and rose petals. On the palate, notes of cherry, mushroom and earth are accompanied by well integrated tannins, a silky texture and lovely minerality. This wine is perfect for pairing with food including mushroom dishes, duck or roasted lamb.