"It looks as if the mountain decided to build itself a winery." That's the most common visitor reaction on arriving at Zuccardi Valle de Uco. The rammed-earth walls, the stone, the long horizontal lines: the building was designed by the architects Tom Hughes to disappear into the Andes behind it. It is, according to World's Best Vineyards, the most awarded winery in the world in recent years.

Planning your visit? Discover our private winery tours in Mendoza — or explore our fine wine experiences.

But Zuccardi isn't famous for its architecture. It's famous for what's in the bottle. This guide covers the family behind the winery, the soil-driven philosophy of Sebastián Zuccardi, what to taste when you go, and why the journey to Paraje Altamira is worth it.

Three generations, a quiet revolution

The Zuccardi story begins in 1963, when the Italian engineer Alberto Zuccardi developed a vineyard irrigation system in Maipú that allowed his family to plant their first commercial vines. His son José Alberto turned the operation into one of Argentina's most respected mid-sized wineries, building a reputation on unconventional varietals and a strong commercial footprint.

The current chapter is led by Sebastián Zuccardi, the third generation, who took the family in a different direction. Where his predecessors built a successful winery in Maipú, Sebastián moved the soul of the operation south, to Paraje Altamira in the Uco Valley, betting on a more extreme, mineral, terroir-focused expression of Malbec.

The Zuccardi Valle de Uco facility opened in 2016 and quickly became more than a winery: a statement about what Argentine wine could be once it stopped imitating and built itself around its own materials and geology.

The building: rammed earth and stone

The architecture is the first lesson of the visit. The building uses rammed earth, limestone and concrete drawn directly from the surrounding land. The decision was philosophical: if the wines speak of the local terroir, the building should speak of the same thing. The result is a structure that doesn't look like a winery, but like a quiet extension of the landscape.

The visitor experience is designed around the same idea. You climb to the terrace with its view of the Andes, descend through the production floor (visible from raised walkways), cross the concrete fermentation halls, and finally reach a tasting room where the building's own materials frame the wines you're about to taste.

The wines: Piedra Infinita and the geology of Malbec

Sebastián Zuccardi's project in Paraje Altamira is, in essence, an argument that Argentine Malbec has been misread. The conventional Malbec of the past two decades was rich, smoky, opulent. Zuccardi's Uco Valley wines are cooler, leaner, more textured: built around limestone soils and concrete fermentations rather than new oak barrels.

The top range, Piedra Infinita, has become the most internationally awarded Argentine Malbec. This project's single-vineyard bottlings — Piedra Infinita Gravascal, Púrpura and the limited series — tell a story of soil rather than grape. Tasted alongside the entry-level Zuccardi Concreto and the Aluvional series, they offer one of the clearest geological tastings available in any wine region.

If you'd like an introduction to the wider Uco Valley story, our private Uco Valley tour page covers the region's wines and terroir in depth.

The restaurant: Piedra Infinita Cocina

The winery's restaurant, Piedra Infinita Cocina, has become one of the most celebrated winery dining experiences in South America. Chef Julián Cervantes builds menus around what the region produces directly — local lamb, freshwater fish, mountain vegetables, herbs from the estate — and the wines are served alongside dishes designed to lift them rather than overshadow them.

The restaurant has received international recognition consistently. Reservations are essential, and combining lunch here with the winery visit makes a complete half-day experience — perhaps the most rewarding lunch-and-tasting combination in Mendoza.

Practical information

Where it is

Zuccardi Valle de Uco is in Paraje Altamira, in the San Carlos district, in the southern part of the Uco Valley. The drive from the city of Mendoza takes roughly 1 hour 45 minutes, and the final stretch winds through vineyards with views of the Andes.

This is a long day if you combine it with a second Uco Valley winery. Most travellers who include Zuccardi treat it as the anchor of a full Uco Valley day, with one complementary winery (usually a small boutique producer) and the meal at Piedra Infinita Cocina.

Reservations

Like Catena, Zuccardi requires booking well ahead — ideally two to three months in advance for high season. The combined visit-plus-lunch experience is the most requested format and fills first. The standard tasting alone has more availability, but still requires a booking.

Tasting tiers

Options range from a guided visit with a classic tasting (75 minutes) to the premium tasting including Piedra Infinita single-vineyard wines and barrel samples. The private experience is significantly more expensive but, for serious wine travellers, it's the closest you can get to the project's most ambitious work.

What makes Zuccardi different

Many travellers visit both Zuccardi and Catena Zapata on the same trip and ask which to prioritise. The answer depends on what you're looking for:

• Catena Zapata represents the historic project that built modern Argentine wine: classic, textured, Bordeaux-influenced Malbec; established excellence.
• Zuccardi Valle de Uco represents where the conversation is heading: cooler, mineral, terroir-driven wines built on a different vision of what Argentine Malbec can be.

The honest answer is that a serious wine traveller should visit both. They aren't redundant: they're two complementary readings of Argentine wine, separated by an hour's drive and a generation of thinking.

FAQ

Is Zuccardi too far for the journey to be worth it?

The drive from Mendoza is genuinely long: around two hours each way. But the experience is dense enough that it isn't wasted time in a well-designed itinerary. The mistake is trying to combine Zuccardi with Luján de Cuyo on the same day; the right approach is to give the whole day to the Uco Valley.

Are the Piedra Infinita wines available outside the winery?

Yes, but in very limited quantities. The single-vineyard expressions are made in small lots and distributed selectively. Tasting them at the winery, with the proper context from the team, is significantly different from tasting them blind elsewhere.

Can I go to Piedra Infinita Cocina without the tasting?

You can book the restaurant independently, yes, but the combined experience is what most visitors come for: the wines and the food are explicitly designed around each other.

What's the dress code?

Comfortable smart casual. The restaurant is slightly more formal than the tasting room, but neither requires a jacket.

Zuccardi Valle de Uco is the kind of visit that transforms how a traveller thinks about Argentine wine. If you'd like us to design a private Uco Valley day with Zuccardi as the anchor — including transport, lunch reservations and a complementary boutique winery selected for you — get in touch on WhatsApp.

Related tourPrivate Uco Valley TourVisit Zuccardi and enjoy Piedra Infinita Cocina›

More questions? Take a look at our FAQ with 25 common questions about tours, pricing, logistics and the High Mountain excursion.