2014 Susana Balbo Crios de Susana Balbo Torrontés

The 2014 Crios Torrontés comes from Cafayate in Salta and Altamira in Uco Valley, Mendoza, approximately 50/50. She planted in Altamira with vegetal material from Salta. The wine from Cafayate is fermented there and the wine transferred to Mendoza at the end of the fermentation in a cold truck with the fermenting wine protected by dry ice. The style Susana searches for is one with freshness, tension and acidity, representing the variety without overwhelming the senses, so the wine is easier to pair with food. There is a citric note that is provided by the Mendoza part that is less warm than Salta and from a chalky terroir that is harvested earlier. The wine is cold fermented, with a very clean must to avoid bitterness and also looking for bunches in the shadow, in Salta through the parral pruning and in Mendoza both parral and trellises. The nose is subtle, closer to a spicy Gewürztraminer than a Moscatel, with more flowers and elegance and absent the terpene aromas that come with very ripe Torrontés or if you use the gross lees. Only the fine lees are used here. All these details really make a difference. We talked about the possible food pairings of this aromatic white. Curiously enough the main customer in the US is a restaurant chain with some Japanese (sushi) and fusion cuisine. This is also ideal for Thai food with it's white pepper aromas, the vibrant acidity, and pungent flavors. Textbook Torrontés at unbeatable prices; the label says it all, dry, crisp and aromatic. They are one of the main producers and exporters of Torrontés, the production for this wine is around 420,000 bottles.