Uco Valley: From elevation to plots

FIELD NOTE 01

List three administrative districts

Uco Valley is organized around Tupungato, Tunuyán, and San Carlos. Gualtallary is in Tupungato, Los Chacayes in Tunuyán, and Paraje Altamira is a key locality on the San Carlos side.

FIELD NOTE 02

Altitude alone cannot fully explain it.

Even at the same elevation, the size of stones carried by the river, the attachment of sand, clay, or limestone will differ. For Paraje Altamira, consider its formation as an alluvial fan of the Tunuyán River. It is also important not to assume that the presence of limestone always creates the same aroma.

FIELD NOTE 03

Learning from both red and white.

Zuccardi’s Concreto is a Malbec from Paraje Altamira; Catena’s White Stones is an example of Chardonnay from Gualtallary. Do not directly compare these as being from the same variety. Use them as practice for reading the vineyard and winemaking information for each.

FIELD NOTE 04

Explore inside Uco through materials from two producers

Even within the Uco Valley, Concreto 2019 is a Malbec from Paraje Altamira, while White Stones 2020 is a Chardonnay from Adrianna Vineyard in Gualtallary. As you move from broad region to smaller locality, individual vineyard, and then to plot, the unit of comparison changes.

The two bottles differ in both grape variety and vintage year. The purpose here is not to determine which tastes better, but to find where in the documentation the origin of the raw materials and production processes are described.

Basis for this section:Zuccardi｜Concreto 2019 Technical Information ↗[Source checked 2026-09-23] ／ Catena Zapata｜White Stones 2020 ↗[Source checked 2026-09-23]

FIELD NOTE 05

Even in the same high-altitude region, there is more than one option for container choice.

Concreto 2019 is fermented in concrete vessels without resin lining, using some whole clusters, and undergoes a 20-day maceration. Both malolactic fermentation (MLF) and ageing also take place in concrete. In contrast, the materials for White Stones 2020 note barrel fermentation with partial MLF, and ageing for 12–16 months in French oak barrels used for the 2nd to 4th time.

Neither the idea that concrete means no extraction nor that barrel fermentation automatically means new barrels matches the documentation. By separating grape material, skins and stems, fermentation vessel, and maturation vessel, the differences become clear.

Basis for this section:Zuccardi｜Concreto 2019 Technical Information ↗[Source checked 2026-09-23] ／ Catena Zapata｜White Stones 2020 ↗[Source checked 2026-09-23]

FIELD NOTE 06

From altitude figures to tasting hypotheses

The 1,450m elevation of White Stones 2020 refers to a specific vineyard. Don’t use this as the elevation for all of Uco; instead, also consider sunlight, nighttime temperatures, and water management when thinking about ripening. Even if you detect acidity or weight during tasting, you cannot conclude these are solely from elevation. In addition to grape variety, MLF and lees management also play roles, so retain both geographic and winemaking hypotheses.

Basis for this section:Catena Zapata｜White Stones 2020 ↗[Source checked 2026-09-23]

Courses related to this question

Malbec: Separating elevation, extraction, and vessel →

Zuccardi: Even for the same label, grapes and methods change →

Catena Zapata: examining plots within the same high-altitude vineyard →