Finca y Bodega Vistalba, Mendoza
In Luján de Cuyo, in the heart of the Vistalba wine region, Carlos Pulenta has realized his personal project. Construction of an architecturally unique and now multi-award-winning winery began in 2000 on the 58-hectare estate, which has been in the family since 1970. In addition to the technical installations, the beautiful building houses a lodge with two stylishly furnished rooms, a restaurant, and a conference center, distinguishing itself in a very pleasant way from many other newly built bodegas by avoiding the creation of an architectural monument. Instead, Carlos Pulenta focused on building a technically state-of-the-art and functional winery designed specifically for the production of top-tier wines: exclusive use of gravity (no pumps), cutting-edge humidity and air circulation systems, as well as custom-made concrete tanks with integrated micro-oxygenation and fully automatic temperature control. After more than 30 years in responsible positions at Bodegas Trapiche and Bodegas Salentein, Carlos Pulenta decided to realize his own vision of high-quality Mendoza cuvées. All three “Cortes”—the first vintages were launched in late 2005—had already secured a permanent place on the shelves of wine shops in Buenos Aires within just a few months and received great recognition on the international stage.