The winery sits behind walls laid out according to ancient sacred geometry, its proportions tuned to the golden ratio and to pi. For founders Constantinos and Silvina Krontiras, biodynamics is not a marketing line but the literal blueprint of the building where the wine is made.
Backstory
The Greek-Argentine couple established Bodegas Krontiras in 2004, intent on making pure, terroir-driven Argentine wine. They acquired an old vineyard in the Perdriel sector of Lujan de Cuyo and planted a second site in Maipu. The two properties were converted to organic farming in 2009 and became fully biodynamic in 2012, making Krontiras one of the first wineries in the country to take that step. Since 2015 the estate has also experimented with zero-sulfur reds, which now sit alongside its more conventionally made biodynamic bottlings.
The Region
Both vineyards lie in high-altitude Mendoza, in the foothills of the Andes. Perdriel, within Lujan de Cuyo, is one of Argentina's most respected zones for Malbec, while the Maipu plantings grow at roughly 900 meters above sea level. At these elevations the cool mountain nights preserve acidity and aromatic detail, giving the fruit freshness despite the intense Andean sunlight.
Vineyards & Farming
The Perdriel parcel is built around an ancient vineyard, with vines reported to be around 120 years old, a rare resource in any wine region. The estate became one of the first in Argentina to farm biodynamically, treating the vineyard as a self-sustaining organism rather than a crop to be fed with inputs. Aglianico, an Italian variety the family has planted widely, appears unusually at home in the Mendoza climate.
Winemaking
The cellar building was conceived around biodynamic principles, applying the golden ratio and pi to its architecture to create a calm setting for fermentation and aging. The flagship Natural Malbec is made with no added sulfur and sees no oak, capturing the fruit as directly as possible. Other reds, such as the Malbec drawn from younger Maipu vines, are aged around twelve months in a mix of first- and second-use French oak.
The Wines
Malbec is the heart of the range, led by the zero-sulfur Natural Malbec and joined by cuvees such as Wisdom and Explore. Krontiras also works with old-vine Tempranillo and Petit Verdot, an amber skin-contact wine, and the Afron pet-nat made from Aglianico, all of them reflecting the founders' Mediterranean roots transplanted to the Andes.