Andes Plateau Cota 500 Cabernet Sauvignon Cachapoal Valley 2023

Andes Plateau is the passion project of Felipe Uribe, a man who clearly isn’t afraid of a little frost if it means capturing the electric energy of high-altitude fruit.

The “Cota 500” name isn’t just marketing fluff; it marks the minimum elevation (500 meters) where these grapes are born. At these heights in the Cachapoal Valley, the cool Andean winds and dramatic day-to-night temperature swings do something magical: they preserve a snapping acidity that you just don’t find in the big and jammy Cabs of the valley floor. The 2023 vintage is a vibrant, high-definition expression of the varietal. It’s far more Bordeaux-esque in its soul than your typical New World powerhouse.

Medium-bodied and wonderfully lean, driven by a spine of mineral-etched acidity and fine-grained, tongue-prickling tannins. This is a wine where the wood stays in the background, letting the rocky, colluvial soils of the Andes do all the talking.