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Travel
 Chile experience: part 2
4 October 2009 Santiago and introductory tasting I shouldn’t have grumbled about LAN. We took off in time and the service was much nicer than on the return Iberia flight. There was a selection of 36 films, and I finally watched A Good Year about a London trader who inherited a chateau with vineyards in Provence.
Santiago airport and the city as seen from a car leave a good impression. A new airport and newly constructed glass business centres and skyscrapers hint that Chile is getting wealthier. But the crisis can also be felt. There is a big construction site in the centre of the city which is supposed to be the largest shopping mall with a luxury hotel. Construction is stopped through the lack of investment until better times.
Actually, we didn’t go sightseeing in Santiago, and the reason we stopped in the city was to taste a selection of wines. Organisers of our trip, Brandabout agency, put together a tasting of 6 Sauvignon Blanc, 2 Pinot Noir, 9 Carmenere or blends, and a couple of “surprises” — Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. The tasting was blind, the names were announced after each flight.
When compared to the Loire, New Zealand or Styria, Chilean Sauvignon Blanc regularly features aromas and flavours of grapefruit and asparagus. Acidity in young wines (2009 vintage) was often high and not well balanced. T.H. Sauvignon Blanc Lo Abarca 2008 from Undurraga offered good equilibrium and, being inspired by Burgundy winemaking style, stood out as one of my favourite wines in this tasting.
Vina Requingua Puerto Viejo Sauvignon Blanc Reserve Curico Valley 2009 83
TerraMater Vineyard Reserva Sauvignon Blanc Maipo Valley 2009 85
J. Bouchon Sauvignon Blanc Maule Valley 2009 86
Undurraga T.H. Sauvignon Blanc Lo Abarca San Antonio Valley 2008 89
Baron Philippe de Rothschild Reserva Sauvignon Blanc Casablanca Valley 2009 86
Casa Lapostolle Casa Sauvignon Blanc Rapel Valley 2009 87
Pinot Noir in Chile, like everywhere else outside Burgundy, is tough to make well. Tasted wines suffered from oakiness or high extraction, or both.
Undurraga T.H. Pinot Noir Leyda Valley 2008 85
Casa Lapostolle Cuvee Alexandre Pinot Noir Casablanca Valley 2007 85
Two “jokers” were included mid-way through the tasting, a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Malbec. Cabernet offered nice drinking thanks to its silky tannins, ripe fruit and attractive leafy character.
Vina Requingua Toro de Pierda Cabernet Sauvignon Curico Valley 2008 88
J Bouchon Reserva Especial Malbec Maule Valley 2007 83
The Carmenere lineup was the most heterogeneous. Despite the attempts to promote it as a flagship Chilean variety, local wineries are still learning how to work with it. Properly grown and vinified Carmenere can give excellent results, but at the moment Chile offers very few such wines. Carmenere’s potential was demonstrated by Casa Lapostolle Cuvee Alexandre Carmenere 2007, which is made in Apalta — one of the best areas for the grape.
Vina Requingua Toro de Pierda Carmenere / Cabernet Sauvignon Curico Valley 2008 85
TerraMater Unusual Carmenere — Shiraz Maipo Valley 2009 87
La Rosa La Palma Carmenere Cachapoal Valley 2009 83
La Rosa La Capitana Carmenere Cachapoal Valley 2008 80
Vina Requingua Puerto Viejo Carmenere Curico Valley 2008 84
Undurraga Sibaris Colchagua Valley 2007 81
Baron Philippe de Rothschild Reserva Carmenere Rapel Valley 2008 80
Casa Lapostolle Cuvee Alexandre Carmenere Colchagua Valley 2007 92
J Bouchon Mingre (Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, Malbec, Syrah, Merlot) Maule Valley 2006 86
Here’s a short video featuring tasted wines and with my comments in Russian.
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