Finca La Colonia Merlot, Argentina

In 1885, the Buenos Aires to Mendoza railway opened, cementing the significance of this emerging wine-growing region high in the Andean foothills. Ten years later, Edmund Norton planted the first vines in Mendoza’s Lujn de Cuyo district.

At 900-1100 metres, the altitude moderates the temperature, causing an extended ripening season, and also expose the vines to more ultraviolet light, which encourages the development of colour and tannin in the black-skinned varieties. The result is whites packed with vibrant flavour and good natural acidity, and well-structured, food-friendly reds.

Norton has 680 hectares of vineyard in production, minutely mapped and divided into parcels so that the individual varieties, clones and training methods suit the soil in each.

Minimal treatments are used in the vineyards, which are run along virtually organic lines. All the grapes are hand picked.