Bodega Catena Zapata

The Catena family has been elevating Argentine wine for 100 years, which is probably why Catena Zapata was named “The World’s Most Admired Wine Brand” by Drinks International in 2020. Established in 1902, the bodega played a pioneering role in the explosion of Malbec and in exploring extreme high-altitude winemaking. The pioneering Nicolás Catena Zapata, a former Decanter Man of the Year, is widely credited with putting Argentinean wine on the world map and should be placed on a level with the likes of Robert Mondavi in Napa and Angelo Gaja in Piedmont. It is “the most important winery in Argentina” according to Wine Advocate, who also notes that: “the name Catena on the label is a guarantee of quality.” The winery is now run by Dr Laura Catena, the fourth-generation vintner and a graduate of both Harvard and Stanford Universities, who is fast becoming the face of Argentina’s wine scene. When she’s not making wine or writing books, she’s a part-time physician of Emergency Medicine in San Francisco – a suitably remarkable winemaker for an equally remarkable estate.