2024 Bodega Chacra - Pinot Noir Patagonia Barda (750ml)

Bodega Chacra was founded in 2004 by Piero Incisa della Rocchetta, grandson of the founder of Tuscany's famed Sassicaia estate, who set out to find a truly distinctive site for cool climate Pinot Noir. His search led him to the Río Negro Valley in northern Patagonia, where he discovered an ungrafted plot of vines dating to 1932, among the oldest Pinot Noir plantings in the world. He purchased that vineyard along with neighboring parcels planted in 1955 and 1967, and the estate today farms organically and biodynamically in a remote desert climate so arid and isolated that phylloxera has never taken hold.

Barda draws primarily from a younger vineyard planted in 1990 using cuttings from those original old vines, supplemented by declassified fruit from Chacra's more prestigious bottlings. The grapes are hand harvested and fermented with a small portion of whole clusters at low temperatures using native yeast in cement tanks. The wine then ages for about eight months across a combination of concrete, stainless steel, and French oak barrels, with only a small share of new wood.

The result is a bright, perfumed Pinot Noir with notes of cranberry, wild strawberry, and rose petal, layered with baking spice and a whisper of woodsmoke. The palate is supple and silky, carrying fresh acidity and fine tannins toward a long, balanced finish. Pair it with roast chicken, grilled salmon, or a soft-ripened cheese.