Familia Zuccardi, Finca Las Cuchillas, 2024
Familia Zuccardi, Finca Las Cuchillas, 2024
- 75cl
- 13%
- White Still
- Malbec
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Optimal drinking window: 2026 - 2032
Est. delivery in Winter, 2027
Zuccardi's Finca Las Cuchillas sits in the Uco Valley's Paraje Altamira, where rocky, limestone-rich soils and significant diurnal shifts push Malbec towards precision rather than power. This is not the plush, chocolatey Malbec Argentina made its name on — it's leaner, more mineral, with the kind of red-fruited energy and structural tension that looks more towards the Rhône than Mendoza's warmer lowlands.
The 2024 vintage arrived after a dry, well-regulated growing season that kept yields in check and acidity lively. We find this wine at its most appealing over the next four to five years, when the fruit and the chalky grip will have found their balance — though it's honest and expressive enough to drink with pleasure right now. Lovely with a simple asado, or anything that benefits from a wine with a bit of backbone.
What the critics say:
"The 2024 Chardonnay Finca Las Cuchillas hails from San Pablo and was aged for 10 months in concrete. Sourced from two of the area’s most calcareous soils, it opens with restrained aromas of white fruit, complemented by field herbs and delicate pastry notes. Creamy, chalky and energetic on the palate, this combines generous concentration with a subtle lightness. The 2024 is a complex and supremely expressive white that balances intensity and precision—the hallmark of Gualtallary."
Las Cuchillas sits in Paraje Altamira in the southern Uco Valley, at altitudes around 1,000 metres above sea level. The soils here are notably rocky and calcium carbonate-rich — limestone and gravel over clay — which restricts vigour, encourages deep root systems, and gives the wines a distinctive chalky mineral quality that you simply don't find lower down in Mendoza. The diurnal temperature range in this part of the Uco Valley is substantial, often exceeding 20°C between day and night, which locks in freshness and acidity even in warm vintages.
Paraje Altamira is a subzone of the Uco Valley within greater Mendoza, increasingly recognised as one of Argentina's most distinctive addresses for Malbec. Unlike the warmer, more fertile soils closer to Mendoza city, Altamira's elevation and rocky limestone terrain produce wines of notable structure and mineral character. Argentina's wine law is still catching up with the quality conversation happening on the ground here — Altamira has Geographical Indication status but lacks the strict regulatory framework of a European appellation — yet producers like Zuccardi have effectively defined its identity through consistent, single-site bottlings.
The 2024 growing season in Mendoza delivered exactly what vignerons had been hoping for after a string of challenging years. Winter brought adequate snowfall to the Andes, ensuring steady irrigation flows, whilst spring arrived gently without the late frosts that had plagued recent vintages. Summer heat was intense but not punishing, and crucially, the harvest period in March and April stayed dry and cool, allowing producers to pick at optimal ripeness without racing against rain or extreme temperatures.
What emerged from the cellars shows Mendoza firing on all cylinders. The Malbecs display that perfect balance of power and freshness we associate with the region's finest years - deeply coloured with ripe tannins that don't overwhelm, and acidity that keeps everything lively. Cabernet Sauvignon from the higher altitude sites is particularly impressive, whilst Chardonnay and Torrontés benefited enormously from the cool harvest conditions. Most wines are drinking beautifully now but will happily cellar until 2030 and beyond for the premium bottlings.
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