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Bodegas Chacra

The Bodega Chacra is located in northern Patagonia's Rio Negro Valley. The property's location in the arid central Argentine desert is mitigated by the confluence of the Neuquen and Limay Rivers, which flow from the Andes and meet in the Rio Negro, which flows into the Atlantic.

The climate is dry, with a maximum humidity of 30% and an annual rainfall average of seven inches. Because of this aridity, combined with the natural barrier of the surrounding desert, phylloxera and vine diseases are completely absent. The Rio Negro Valley's soil, an ancient riverbed composed of limestone, sand, and clay, combined with the Valley's pristine pollution-free air and tremendous luminosity, provide ideal growing conditions for Pinot Noir.

Piero Incisa della Rocchetta purchased the first of Bodega Chacra's vineyards in 2004, a property that already had an existing, but abandoned, vineyard planted in 1932. This gnarled and ungrafted Pinot Noir vineyard was later added to a neighboring vineyard planted in 1955. Piero has created a winery that exists outside of the usual New World vs. Old World debate and is redefining what is possible with Pinot Noir (and now Chardonnay with the help of Jean-Marc Roulot) in the Southern Hemisphere with these old vineyards ostensibly in the middle of nowhere.

Piero is the grandson of Sassacaia's Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta. Piero's grandfather instilled in him a love of fine wines as well as a reverence for and responsibility for nature. He was the author of numerous books on the subject and implemented sustainable farming and nature preservation in Bolgheri. Piero's favorite childhood memories - nature, vineyards, family meals - undoubtedly shaped him. Piero looks up to Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta as a mentor and role model.

A "chacra" is a special piece of land in Patagonia dedicated to fruit cultivation. At the same time, chakras are vital energy centers that allow us to connect with the entire universe, everything living and vibrating.