Bordeaux's Michel Rolland Releases Argentinean Wines

Rolland, known for opulent, modern-style wines such as those from his Pomerol property Château Le Bon-Pasteur, currently consults for Chile's Casa Lapostolle and Argentina's Etchart winery. His work with Etchart (which is owned by the Pernod-Ricard company) brought him into contact with the Cafayate area of Argentina, north of the country's better-known Mendoza wine region. The Etchart family owns a 24-acre vineyard there planted exclusively to Malbec vines, which are an average 60 years old.

Rolland is using those grapes to produce two wines, starting with the 1999 vintage. The main San Pedro de Yacochuya wine, of which there are about 1,665 cases, is being sold through Bordeaux merchants. No American importer has yet been announced for the wine, but Wine Spectator will review it if it becomes available in the Unites States. A second wine, of which there were 1,250 cases made, will be available only in Argentina.

Read James Molesworth's recent tasting reports on South American wines: