I have always enjoyed and admired in music the concept of supergroups. As Wikipedia describes,” A supergroup is a musical group whose members are successful as solo artists or as members of other successful groups.” The band Cream comes to mind, the union of music icons Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, and Ginger Baker. Other favorite supergroups are Crosby Stills and Nash, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Traveling Wilburys, The Highwaymen, and of course, The Three Tenors. All consist of an already successful artist combining their talents with other successful artists to make a final musical masterpiece elevated beyond what each could accomplish by themselves. This same concept of supergroups is found in winemaking. Baron Rothschild and Robert Mondavi gave us Opus One, Mouton Rothschild and Concha y Toro got together to give us Almaviva. And we also have CARO, a supergroup collaboration of Baron Rothschild and Catena in Argentina.

Bodegas CARO is a joint venture of France’s esteemed Domaine Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and Argentina’s premier pioneer Bodegas Catena. Their mission: to blend two wine cultures and create a unique expression of Argentina’s terroir. The name CARO is an amalgam of the two, CAtena and ROthschild, but the blend goes beyond the superficial. Bodega Catena Zapata, under founder Nicolas Catena, pioneered the planting of Malbec in the Andean foothills of Mendoza. The Catena family brings their expertise with the Malbec grape and where it thrives best to the partnership. Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) adds their legendary expertise with Cabernet Sauvignon and centuries-old art of blending to the brand. Together, CARO showcases the two signature grapes of each producer with the cultural influences of both countries. The CARO project began in 1999 and, in the 21+ years since, has demonstrated that blending Cabernet Sauvignon with Malbec is a plus; it’s truly the best of both worlds, where the sum of the parts is greater than the whole. Caro is a marked departure in style for Catena. “Catena’s Malbecs often undergo extended maceration to produce richer flavors. In contrast, Caro is given a much shorter maceration, resulting in a more elegant style,” said Linda Chan, Grand Vin’s assistant manager.



The success of the first vintages of CARO encouraged Domaines Barons de Rothschild Lafite and the Catena family to create another premium wine, this time a Malbec dominated cuvée, that would nevertheless be a balance between the Bordeaux and Argentine styles. To celebrate its Andean origin, the wine was named Amancaya, after the mountain flower which grows in the Andes.

Grapes are sourced from selected plots of old vines in Lujan de Cuyo just outside Mendoza and from Altamira, further South. In Lujan, soils vary depending on how close vineyards are to the mountains or Mendoza River and tend to form alluvial layers of loam, rock, and gravel. In Altamira, vineyards are planted 1000m above sea level on the ancient alluvial bed of the Tunuyan River.

The harvest is conducted by hand and grapes are carefully sorted on tables and destemmed before being placed in stainless steel tanks for fermentation. Regular pumping-over ensures a gentle extraction of the tannins. After malolactic fermentation, 50% of the wine is transfered into French oak barrels for a period of 12 months, and 50% is placed in concrete vats.

Deep red color with intense ruby hues. The nose is complex with red fruits and figs, followed by aromas of blackcurrant. On the palate, the wine is round with soft tannins, displaying generous aromas of blueberry and blackberry. Well balanced, with a good persistence on the finish.

60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Malbec

Elegantly detailed aromas of violet, mace and crushed raspberry pave a nice entry to this richly textured red, which shows fleshy plum and raspberry flavors midpalate, lightened by an underpinning of minerality, before toasty mocha notes and round tannins arrive on the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. Wine Spectator 93 pts #17 Top 100

There’s more ripeness in the nose and flavors of the 2020 Amancaya, reflecting the warm and dry vintage. It has 14.5% alcohol and was produced with a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Malbec, reversing the dominant grape to combine the fruit and freshness of Malbec with the power and complexity of Cabernet Sauvignon. Fifty percent of the volume matured in oak barrels while the other half was kept in concrete to keep the fruit-driven profile with a soft palate and round tannins. Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate 91 pts

The 2020 Red Blend Amancaya is 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Malbec from Altamira & Agrelo, Medoza, and was 50% aged in barrels and foudres for 12 months. Garnet red in color. The 2020 has a mild nose of ripe fruit, hints of herbs, plum jam and blackcurrant. The oak dominates in the mouth with good volume, an expansive, indulgent, slightly saline flow and coarsely textured tannins. Vinous 91 pts

Bodegas Caro Amancaya 2020 

Our wine team was first introduced to this vintage of Amacaya at a dinner before Christmas. It was one of about 12 wines we sampled through a long meal. What a casual observer like me notices is when my team keeps going back to one bottle even though it wasn’t the most expensive wine on the table; in fact, it was on the lower end of the selection. And then, to find out it was #17 on Wine Spectators’ Top 100 and the story behind this wine, I suddenly had my calculator out to find out what our best bottle cost would be. And then they came up with a $36 Mail In Rebate to boot, which makes this wine a must-have wine. Our wine staff tried the wine again this week, and it seems better than I remember it. Dark garnet color, dark berry aromas with some herbs. On the palate, it was a brooding collection of clean, black fruit with olive and mint—mouth coating moderate tannins and balanced acids, leading to a berry and olive finish. We were amazed at how balanced the Cabernet and Malbec were in that they were integrated into a work of art. This wine is not an overblown Argentina wine but a balanced wine with French influence. I like this wine a lot, and I know you will too.

Regular Price: $19.99

Average Internet Price: $22.00

*Sale Price is on 6 or more bottles

Wine is packed in a 12-bottle case

$36 Mail in rebate on 12 bottles

Final Cost is $13 a bottle on a 12-bottle purchase

$15 Mail in rebate on 6 bottles

Final cost is $13.50 a bottle on a 6-bottle purchase

*Wine pricing for these wine promotions are held for two weeks after the email offer.

We can hold wines in unpaid reserves for two weeks to allow you time to pick up your wine. If it takes you longer than that to pick up your wines, give us a call, and we can process your wine and move it to paid reserves.

Orders must be done by replying to this email. The reason is that I need to keep control of the inventory in one central spot. Emailing or calling your favorite wine geek at one of our four stores may not get your orders in on time to be counted or processed and this creates a helter-skelter for us to get you the wine. For the same reason, ordering on our online Web Store is linked to our regular price, and this sale price is only offered on the email platform. It is also why it takes me some time to respond due to the deluge of orders that I sometimes get. We haven't reached the efficiency or volume of Amazon yet, and in this post-pandemic environment, simple operations sometimes prove difficult. Thank you in advance for your patience.

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