A Journey Through Time and Terroir: Tasting Catena Zapata at Vinexpo 2026

There’s something about Vinexpo that always feels a bit like stepping into a global playground for wine lovers, but this year, the Catena Zapata event was the ride everyone wanted a turn on.

Tucked inside the buzz and swirl of Vinexpo 2026, the session led by the brilliant Dr Laura Catena was one of those rare moments where the room just settled. Glasses in hand, chatter softened, and suddenly we were all completely hooked. Dr Catena has that magic mix of deep knowledge, effortless storytelling, and genuine passion that makes you feel like you’re not just tasting wine, you’re travelling through it.

And what a journey it was.

We started fresh and bright with the Catena Alta Chardonnay 2024, a beautiful introduction that set the tone, elegant, vibrant, and quietly confident. But then things took a turn into something truly special, with the Adrianna Vineyard White Stones Chardonnay 2016. Tasting a wine with that kind of age, especially a Chardonnay, always feels like a bit of time travel. And this one? It was singing. Layers of complexity, a softness that only comes with patience, and a kind of refined elegance that made you pause mid-sip just to take it all in.  There’s a certain joy in realising that a wine hasn’t just lasted over time- it’s thrived.

Then came the reds, each unfolding like a chapter in a story. The Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino 2023 was bold and expressive, a reminder of how exciting young Malbec can be when handled with precision and care. But for me, one of the standout moments was the Catena Alta Malbec 2006. Again, that magic of age. It had softened into something beautifully complex and balanced - still powerful, but with a grace that only years can bring. If wines could have personalities, this one felt wise, composed, and maybe just a little charmingly nostalgic.

We rounded out the tasting with the Catena Zapata Birth of Cabernet 2022 and the Nicolas Catena Zapata 2022, both showcasing the ambition and craftsmanship that define the winery today. These weren’t just wines - they were statements. You could feel the intention behind them, the careful decisions, the experimentation, the drive to push boundaries.

And that’s really what struck me most during the session.

Dr Catena spoke not just about the wines, but about the work behind them - the research, the vineyard studies, the exploration of altitude and terroir. It was a reminder that great wine doesn’t just happen. It’s built, tested, refined, and sometimes reinvented. That level of dedication is clearly playing a huge role in elevating Argentinian wines on the world stage, and tasting that evolution in the glass was genuinely exciting.

What made the experience even more special was the sense of continuity. I attended Dr Catena’s session at Vinexpo two years ago, and it was just as engaging, just as informative. But this time, there was an added depth - a sense of momentum. You could see how the story is progressing, vintage by vintage, idea by idea.  And isn’t that what makes wine so captivating? It’s never static. It evolves, just like the people who make it and the people who drink it.

As the session wrapped up and attendees lined up for pictures with the enigmatic Dr Laura Catana, there was that shared look among attendees - the quiet acknowledgement that we had just experienced something memorable. Not just a tasting, but a glimpse into a philosophy, a legacy, and a future. 

Vinexpo always delivers, but this? This was something special.