It has just been announced that Nicolas Catena has been honoured by Decanter Magazine as their 'Man of the Year' 2009. He becomes the first South American recipient of this coveted title and follows in the footsteps of Christian Moueix, Anthony Barton and Marcel Guigal, winners from the last three years. The award is decided on by the Decanter publishing team after consultation with key wine figures around the world and is not influenced by other awards or wine show medals. Calling him a 'Founding Father', they credit him with changing the direction of the Argentinian wine industry and recognise him as a pioneer in experimenting with clones and microclimates. "He has been instrumental in changing the Argentinian wine scene more than anybody else, pushing it towards high quality and intelligent marketing," said Baron Eric de Rothschild.

Making the case for Malbec
Over the last 40 or so years, he has established Bodega Catena Zapata as the most prestigious and respected winery in South America. The flagship, Nicolas Catena Zapata, a Cabernet/ Malbec blend, and the Alamos Malbec are rightly considered amongst Argentina's icon wines and the collaboration with Chateau Lafite-Rothschild to produce Caro has also helped to showcase both Catena's and Argentina's ability to produce world class wines.

"Nicolas has consistently been the most stimulating of wine producers. The rigour he applies to the strategic challenge of developing fine wine and understanding the needs of the market, is of a different level to anyone else I have met. Bibendum has thoroughly enjoyed contributing to the last 15 years of his journey," said Simon Farr, Deputy Chairman of Bibendum.

According to Nicolas "Bibendum were the first European company to understand what I was working to achieve with Argentine wine, in particular the potential of Malbec, when Simon Farr came to see me in Mendoza in the early 90's. I have worked with Bibendum for over 15 years, over which time we have shared a passion to communicate both the quality and the intrinsic difference of
Argentine wine."

He, more than anyone else, has established Malbec on the world stage and has driven a whole new group of wine drinkers to enjoy what Argentina does best. Conventional wisdom used to put Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay first, but the roots of his philosophy were sown over a century ago when Nicola, his grandfather and an immigrant from Italy, settled in Mendoza and chose Malbec because he saw it as the best and most reliable variety.

A true explorer: high altitude viticulture In 1993, and against everyone's advice, Nicolas broke new ground by planting the Adrianna Vineyard at high altitude in the Uco Valley - 1440m above sea level. After tireless experimenting he found that this combination of low temperatures, poor soil and high sunlight intensity was perfect for Malbec.

"In Argentina, the physical composition of soils is not relevant because humidity is controlled through irrigation. The relevant terroir factors affecting aroma and flavour are temperature, which depends on the latitude, and sunlight intensity, which depends on altitude," said Nicholas. Today, thanks to his trailblazing, the Uco Valley is considered the prime vineyard location in Argentina.

More tributes for Nicolas Catena

"I am truly delighted - although not entirely surprised - to see Nicolas honoured by such a prestigious award. One of the wine world's true visionaries, he stands tall amongst the pantheon of Argentina's wine heroes," James Forbes, Wines of Argentina

"Nicolas Catena is justly credited with putting Argentinean wines on the world map, by the best expedient of focusing entirely on quality. It's great to know he has started a wine dynasty too."
Jancis Robinson MW