GG_N54_FR-web

ARGENTINA
GRAPE
THE 3SAPAS TEAM: JONAS LÉPINE (SALES), FLORIAN FRÉSARD (OPERATIONS AND
DESIGN), ARNAUD FRÉSARD (PRESIDENT AND CEO), LUIS COITA CIVIT (WINEMAKER
AND AGRONOMIST) AND FERNANDO SOTA (WINEMAKER)
Fortunately for Argentina and wine drinkers
around the world, Malbec held onto its original
genetics despite the phylloxera plague that ravaged
France shortly after the mid-1800s. In Argentina
it was popularly known as the ‘French grape’, and
for more than a century it was used to make table
wines, blended with other varietals, due to domestic
consumption being almost entirely focused on this
type of wine. But from the 1990s onwards, Argentina
discovered that Malbec had enormous potential to
make great wines, and the trend began to change.
Wineries began to experiment, to enter international
markets and to leverage the varietal’s benefits.
Suddenly the country became synonymous with
Malbec at international level. Michel Rolland best
defined this leap in quality: “What Argentina did in
ten years with Malbec, no one else in the world has
done”.
The phenomenon has since swept across the entire
Argentinean wine industry, with Malbec grown
across the country, producing wines spanning the
price brackets. One poignant figure that demonstrates
its success is that in 2022, 56% of Argentina’s
total wine exports were Malbec.
3SAPAS: A SWISS ADVENTURE IN
MENDOZA
THE 3SAPAS VINEYARD IN GUALTALLARY, UCO VALLEY, AT THE FOOT OF THE ANDES
MOUNTAINS
“Friendship. Love for wine and nature. Mendoza”.
These are the initial components of the unique
story of 3Sapas, a project that was born in 2017
when Arnaud Frésard, born in La Chaux-de-
Fonds (Switzerland), arrived in Buenos Aires for
a study exchange aged just 26. After a few trips to
Mendoza, he met a compatriot who introduced him
to the world of wines. Later, after his brother Florian
joined them, Arnaud’s dream took shape, inspired by
the memory of a maternal great-grandfather who
owned a small vineyard in the Veneto and produced
his own wine.
From the outset, the idea was to found a winery that
would represent his generation and bring a breath of
fresh air to a very traditional world. “A young, irreverent
and sustainable winery”, as Arnaud defines it.
Thus 3Sapas was born, an acronym for “three Swiss
94 WINTER 2023 • GILBERT & GAILLARD - THE FRENCH EXPERTS ON WINE