NR1

NR1 is made from white Criollas we harvested by hand on a sunny Sunday morning. The grapes grew in an old vines Criollas vineyard in Tupungato, a small town in the Uco Valley at the foot of the Andes.

We crushed the grapes immediately with our feet and left the juice and the skins together in the tank for 3 days. The fermentation started spontaneously in the evening because of all the native yeasts that live in the vineyard and on the grape skins.

NR1 fermented on the skins and this gives a bit of texture and notes of agrum, white pepper and umami to the wine. This is similar to how orange wines are made, but we kept the skin contact very short so the wine is still white. The skins also protect the wine so you can keep NR1 for a couple of years and it will continue to evolve. 

After 3 days, we slowly took the juice out of the vat and put it into an old used oak barrel to give the wine a little bit of air and a cosy place to rest for a couple of months. You will not taste any oak in the wine, to be clear!

NR1 pairs really well with grilled or smoked vegetables or fish, or just on its own. Let it age a little bit and it will become more complex with nutty undertones that pair beautifully with hard cheeses.

 

 

 

 

 

 

NR2

NR2 is made from red Criollas, also hand harvested in Tupungato. We split the batch of grapes into two: one part we immediately crushed with our feet and one part we left as whole bunches. The part we crushed with our feet, started fermenting almost instantly, again thanks to the many native yeasts that live in the area. The part that we left as whole bunch, started an intra-cellular fermentation after a couple of days and when the berries started to burst, we combined the two. 

After fermentation, we racked NR2 of the skins and remaining stems, and put it in another used oak barrel to let it rest and breathe.

Because we did not destem the grapes, NR2 retained some herbaceous notes, in addition to the bright red fruit, typical for red Criollas. 

NR2 is a bit more funky and pairs really well with tomato-based comfort food (think: pizza or spaghetti night).