The Winery Wise Ass of Maipu of Mendoza

Discovering the wine region of Maipu

Maipu is a wine-growing sub-zone of Argentina's largest viticultural region, Mendoza. A historic wine region, Maipu is home to some of Mendoza's top-quality and high end producers of Bright, intense, red wine from Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. The small town of Maipu Lies on the Southern outskirts of Mendoza City, and Vineyard land stretches south from here toward the Mendoza River, encompassing the smaller regions of Barrancas, Lunlunta and Coquimbito. The similarly extensive Lujan de Cuyo region is located just to the west of Maipu, and San Martin is 32 kilometers (20 mi) to the east.

Like much of Mendoza, Maipu's landscape is dominated by flat vineyards with high altitudes – in this case around 2,600 feet (800m) above sea level. This altitude sees intense sunlight during the day followed by cold nights that are cooled by alpine winds from the Andes Mountains. This diurnal temperature variation slows ripening overnight, extending the growing season and leading to the development of VarietalCharacter without losing precious Acidity. Maipu's position in the rain shadow of the Andes means that it has low annual rainfall.

Therefor the success of viticulture depends of the Mendoza River, which flows along the southern edge of Maipu to provide a plentiful source of Andean meltwater for irrigation. The alluvial soil has been deposited along the banks of the river over time from the Andes. Due to its mountainous origins, this stony, sandy soil has low fertility and is low in organic matter. This is ideal for viticulture as the Dry soil stresses the vines, restricting vigor and yields and leading to the production of small, highly concentrated grapes with thick skins.