Pictured: Succulent short rib at GROVE. Photo courtesy of GROVE Restaurant.

On June 26, GROVE brings the Malbec of Mendoza's snow-capped mountains to Lakewood Ranch. A Taste of Mendoza: Catena Zapata Wine Dinner pairs five courses with the wines of Argentina's most defining producer.

Founded in 1902 and now led by fourth-generation Laura Catena, Catena Zapata exported the country's first Malbec to the United States. The family "got Malbec on the map," says Courtney Cooper of Winebow, the evening’s guest speaker. Without them, she adds, we wouldn’t be drinking it at all.

Cooper describes Catena’s vineyards as “this perfect little place for growing grapes,” crediting the sun, soil and altitude for its distinct flavor. That character inspired Executive Chef Greg Campbell’s special menu. His cooking finds its own coordinates: southern France, northern Spain and the southern U.S. for “a little touch of my real roots."

The tasting opens with a Patagonian shrimp crudo of compressed melon, avocado, citrus, espelette and mint, designed to complement the floral notes and bright acidity of the Catena Rosé. For the third course, he reworks the empanada, plated with a blackberry-Malbec gastrique and smoked onion crema. ”I took an empanada, which is Argentine, then I threw in a duck confit, which is incredibly French," he says. “It makes it fun, and gives people some flavors they wouldn't expect.”

The centerpiece leans southern French, which Campbell calls “more hearty and intense”: bison short rib, Malbec demi-glace, pomme purée and charred broccolini. The braise stands up to its pairing. Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino 2022, estate-grown fruit from two single vineyards, is 100 percent Malbec, says Cooper, “showing exactly what Malbec is, how powerful she is in all of her glory.”

A Taste of Mendoza: Catena Zapata Wine Dinner, Friday, June 26, 2026, at 7:00 pm, Ballroom, GROVE Restaurant, 10670 Boardwalk Loop, Lakewood Ranch, 941-893-4321, grovelwr.com

Pictured: Succulent short rib at GROVE. Photo courtesy of GROVE Restaurant.