Producer
One of the most original winemaking projects of recent years, Masi Tupungato is a fusion of Venetian technique and Argentine terroir. The estate – Vigneti La Arboleda – consists of 140 hectares, of which eighty are currently planted with both Argentine varieties (Malbec and Torrontés) and Venetian grapes (Corvina and Pinot Grigio).
Vineyard
Grapes for this wine are grown organically at an altitude of 950-1050 metres above sea level in the Tupungato Valley. The ground is stony, sandy and chalky with a good content of organic and mineral elements. Rainfall is very low, at 250mm, mostly occuring in summer downpours, and compared to most of Mendoza, night time temperatures are cooler here, giving fresher acidity.
Winery
Corbec is made using Masi’s specialist appassimento method. The two grape varieties were harvested and vinified separately. The selected bunches were laid on specially constructed wooden trays for twenty days. The grapes lost about twenty percent of their weight, but gained in concentration of sugars and aromas. Soft pressing and destemming followed, then the grapes were fermented for twenty days in stainless steel tanks at 20-24oC. After racking, the wine completed its fermentation at 20oC for twenty-five days with the help of selected yeasts. It was aged for eighteen months in medium-toasted French oak barriques before the final blend was assembled.
