Chapter 1
of 4
Los viñedos más altos
Aquí la altitud lo es todo. Most Cafayate vineyards sit around 1,700 metres; others climb past 2,000, 2,400, even 3,000. The air is thin, the sun is fierce, and rain barely falls — often less than 100 mm a year — so the vines drink Andean snowmelt through irrigation.
Two things follow from that. First, the ultraviolet light is so intense that the grapes grow unusually thick skins to protect themselves — and skins are where colour, tannin and aroma live. Second, warm days are followed by sharply cold nights, a swing that can top 20°C. The heat ripens the fruit; the cold locks in acidity and perfume. The result is low yields of small, concentrated, deeply aromatic grapes — wines with vivid colour, freshness, and an almost electric intensity.
