Cara Sur

VISIT IMPORTER'S WEBSITE
Country of Origin: Argentina
Location: Barreal, Calingasta Valley
People: Pancho Bugallo, Marcela Manini, Nuria Año Gargiul, & Sebastián Zuccardi, Owners & Winemakers

Items

Cara Sur 2022 Moscatel Blanco, Barreal Login WA 93 In Stock
Cara Sur 2021 Moscatel Tinto, Barreal Login — In Stock
Cara Sur 2021 'La Totora' Criolla Chica (Pais), Barreal Login WA 94 <1 Case
Cara Sur 2022 Criolla Chica (Pais), Barreal Login WA 93 <1 Case
Cara Sur 2022 'Pergolas' Criollas Tintas, Barreal Login — In Stock

Established in 2011, Cara Sur is a partnership between two couples who were inspired to revive ancestral vines and produce honest wines from these traditional Argentine varieties.

Sebastián Zuccardi and Marcela Manini and friends Nuria Año Gargiulo and Pancho Burgallo are the quartet who quietly produce some of the most unique wines from one of the most underrated microclimates of Argentina: Calingasta Valley of San Juan, north of Mendoza. The wines are made from 80-year-old Muscatel, Muscatel Negro, Bonarda, and Criolla Chica, the Argentine iteration of País (a.k.a. Listan Prieto / Mission). The vines are trained to a parral, a ceiling-trellised system that provides shade and maximizes airflow. The vineyard sits alongside the Los Patos River in Barreal on stony soil at 1,500 meters above sea level. The Cara Sur wines are made in a tiny winery next to Pancho and Nuria’s home where they produce small quantities of wine with minimal intervention.

Cara Sur translates to "south face" and refers to the more challenging approach to Cerro Mercedario, one of Argentina’s tallest peaks, which can be seen from Barreal.

Reviews

  • Cara Sur 2022 Moscatel Blanco, Barreal
    The Wine Advocate
    Rating: 93 (11/30/2022)
    It has 13.5% alcohol and very good freshness and acidity. The nose is serious, aromatic, with herbal notes and Moscatel aromas of orange blossom and fresh grape pulp. They got the grapes riper, but the wine does not show it. They want to make a wine that develops with time, and with riper grapes, you get more aromas and flavors and achieve a fuller wine but still in balance. All whites develop some flor during their élevage.
  • Cara Sur 2022 Criolla Chica (Pais), Barreal
    The Wine Advocate
    Rating: 93 (11/30/2022)
    The 2022 Criolla was produced with Criolla Chica, or Listán Prieto, grapes from three vineyards that fermented and matured separately in 2,000- and 3,000-liter concrete vats for eight months. It's a pale, aromatic and light red, expressive, clean and floral with a medium-bodied, elegant palate with finesse and an ethereal quality, with some grip from the very fine tannins that also give it a dry, chalky finish. It has moderate alcohol, 13%, and ripeness with very good freshness, acidity and especially balance.
  • Cara Sur 2021 'La Totora' Criolla Chica (Pais), Barreal
    The Wine Advocate
    Rating: 94 (11/30/2022)
    The pale red (almost rosé!) 2021 Parcela La Totora is floral, aromatic and elegant, captivating with its strong personality, complex nose and harmonious palate, a wine that really surprises most people. It was produced with the grapes from a very small plot of extremely old Criolla Chica vines on colluvial soils picked at two times, the first half from the higher part fermented destemmed and the second one from the lower and cooler part with full clusters. It's elegant, aromatic and fine-boned, among the best examples of Criolla Chica/Listán Prieto/País out there; it has light and energy, with lots of inner strength. Bravo! They didn't produce this wine in 2020. They bottled 1,200 bottles in December 2021 after maturing in concrete for eight months.