EAT WINE

AWESOME!!! A Chilean wine made the Wine of the Year (2008) for Wine Spectator. That means it beat the Premier Grand Cru, some rockin' Pinot, many, many others. Wow. Clos Apalta is the creme de la creme of Casa Lapostolle winery, a sultry, slinky vintage of 42% Carmenere, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot.

We visit Clos Apalta quite frequently and this has been my favorite vintage besides 2001 (2003 we are still waiting since it was explosive and needed time). 2005, in general, was very feminine for the grand wines of Chile. Long, elegant, slowly revealing itself with soft tannins. I still found the barrel could mellow out a bit. And don't get me wrong, this is new world Rolland-style so the word "big" still applies. But within that genre, it is very expressive. Bravo to the winemakers.

Simultaneously, if being named Wine of the Year wasn't enough, Clos Apalta winery was named Wine Enthusiast's New World Winery of the Year. I call the winery a "shrine to wine". Think the guggenheim in a winery spiraling six stories deep into the ground (never mind all the granite they had to dynamite out and then carve into the floor stones). Slick, understated with fine details in premier craftsmanship, you may never see another like this anywhere else. By the time you get to the second year barrel cellar for tasting, and catch a glimpse of Madame Marnier's private cellar (OMG!), you will be mesmerized.

So what are you waiting for? Go get those bottles, or better yet, cases, of Clos Apalta 2005 before they disappear.  Last time I was in the US, I could hardly believe when I saw it at Trader Joe's in Napa for US$65. A steal. Seriously.

Salud and congratulations Clos Apalta!

http://www.winesofchile.org/article/74

Oh, those Aussies. Always trying to throw out some shockers with the wine labels. I have to admit though, they always make me laugh and it inevitably creates this intense desire to try the wines to see what they are like. Is the wine that good (or bad), evocative?

Comparing cellar notes with my Dad on the phone, he shared with me some of his newest findings that gave me a short lived chuckle. If any of you have tried these, I would love to know what they are like. Or if you have any outrageous wine names, let's get that going too. It is refreshing actually to find these lighthearted labels (although perhaps opportunistic in a marketing sense). I will say that the Australians have nailed the niche of getting people to buy cheap and cheerful wines exclusively on the label as Wine & Spirits Daily posted a while back (http://www.winespiritsdaily.com/2006/02/wild-wine-labels-...).

Anyway, let me know if any you have actually "experienced" these babies. I give them high scores for creativity in the name making at least and some of the ratings I found from Wine Dictator/Spectator:

--Barrel Monkeys 2004, an 16% alcohol Shiraz fruit bomb--oh my! 

Supple, generous and nicely focused, showing pure blackberry and blueberry flavors, which linger on the slightly hot finish. Drink now through 2009. 4,000 cases made. --Bruce Sanderson

--Jealous Bitch 2007, Chardonnay from New South Wales

http://www.chathamimports.com/jealous_chard.php, hmm...not so sure about the dog on the label. Would be willing to bet though that female dog owners in their 20-30s may be the market.

--Two Hands, Two Gnarly Dudes 2005, Shiraz from Barossa

This name I just loved. It is like Sideways meets those Surfing Chefs down under. The wine description on www.snooth.com describes it as "black to the core" followed by aromas of tar, earth, licorice, cedar, and black, black fruits. Ok, I gather its gonna be very chewy with viscosity that may need a knife. All the reviews were favorable and said it was balanced in alcohol-tannins-acid. This is not a light wine though--14.8% alcohol and that kind of dark fruit definitely will need a rack of grilled lamb chops.

Fire up the barbie mate!  

I won't be shy about it. I like O. Fournier wines. A lot. They have style. They are full of finesse and elegance. Soulful, balanced wines with depth that are totally accessible to any palate. Appropriate for any occasion from hamburgers to foie gras. And the price point? Well, I hesitate to tell you. You can either scroll down or just understand that you get a lot of great wine for your buck no matter if you are in their younger lines like Urban,  the sublime "Alpha" range, or even have the luck to come across their cultish Syrah special editon.

I got turned onto O. Fournier at a dinner party in early 2006 when one of their flagship wines from Spain, Spiga, was served. Fittingly, we were having ethereal pasta that night although Spiga really stole the show. Coincidences occured, as usual in South America, and I met the charismatic owner, José Manuel, shortly after at his winery in Mendoza. Over the past couple years, I have visited O. Fournier's space-shuttle venture in the Uco Valley in Mendoza, Argentina and had the privilege of taking the full line of wines and several vintages. Now, Chile is the latest new estate to be born into the O. Fournier family.

After looking for over three years, they found vineyards in the San Antonio and Maule valleys. For those of you not familiar with wine geography in Chile, the Maule is the new frontier for reds in the Central Valley. Although it made mostly "cheap and cheerful" wines for many years with huge extensions of vineyards, there is a plethora of old (Carignan) vines hidden like gems, especially headed towards the coastal town of Constitución in the area of Loncomilla. O. Fournier has found their home in Loncomilla to start producing silky red blends of Cabernet, Merlot, and Carignan. The charm of the Maule is the cooler weather. The reds are more elegant, aromatic, with lush red fruit and clear, fresh notes. This means it doesn't bog down your palate, they are easy to drink. 

The other valley they chose for their whites and future Pinot darling is the current IT location for these varietals: San Antonio. Within San Antonio, the closest appellation to the Pacific Ocean, there is a large variation in terroir. Lo Abarca, at only four kilometers from the sea, has perhaps the poorest soils, coolest nights, and best conditions for growing a mind-blowing Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir (O. Fournier's new neighbors will be Casa Marin winery, currently the best ranked Sauvignon Blanc from Chile).

This morning in my inbox was an inspiring mail from José Manuel about the reviews of their Chilean babies from Decanter magazine in the UK. The article is appropriately headed, "Chile: The Decanter Guide to the New World's most exciting Wine Country" (heck yes!), written by Steven Spurrier.

Centaurí Sauvignon Blanc 2007: A coastal vineyard that preserves both fruit and crispness; silvery pale, white light fruits, and very fine purity of Sauvignon blanc; good fruit with minerality and character (3 stars), US$18

My comments: I thought this was an excellent first showing even with green notes of grass/asparagus. My only caveat, which I have voiced already, is that it falls a little short mid-palate. But that I have faith is with time and getting to know the terroir will change. 

Urban, Maule 2007 Cabernet, Merlot, Carignan blend: 40%, 30%, 30% respectively--deep black/red, crushed berry fruit (like raspberries and blackberries), lifted by spices and still quite tannic. Needs six months and then it will be very good. Drink through 2012. US$12

My comments: This is the bargain wine of the century. That elusive animal of finding a great US$10 range wine. Buy a case and let it sit until 2009--or if you are impatient (as I am), go to Sur La Table and buy one of those wine sprinkles to put in your decanter and let it sit for a few hours to aireate. You will not be disappointed. At this price, it is almost a wine A-HA moment. 

Kudos to O. Fournier. Kicking butt (again).

It seems that most wine buffs are obsessed with how long a wine can, and should, be aged. Will it taste better? Will those tannins round out? Will it turn into hidden gold? For those collecting as a commodity, will it become so valuable that I resell it  to buy more wine futures? Etc. Etc. Well, as I have polled many winemaker friends, one thing is certain: pinpointing a wine's evolution not a science--far from it. The only way to really know when a wine "peaks", assuming your palate is trained and can distinguish a well-evolved wine from one well on its way to being expensive vinegar,  is through constant, consistent testing/tasting of the same vintage. And even in this equation, a specific bottle can cause confusing, different results. Remember, corks are not foolproof and the key "organic" material that let's a wine breathe, age.

On my 2005 trip to Bordeaux, I was privileged enough to taste some vintages older than my own existence. Leathery, velvety, subtle, different. Instead of my usual game of trying to extrapolate how a wine would taste in 10 or 20 years, I tried to work backwords and wondered how it was at its birth. How fun would it be to find a wine and taste it ever year, experiencing it in its "peak"!

Shortly after, I got my wish. Just about the time I was really wanting to put this concept to the test, I came across a great terroir wine--earthy, aromatic Cabernet Sauvignon from the micro appellation of the Maipo Valley known as Quebrada de Macul where cassis and menthol notes dominate the nose followed by bright acidity and soft tannins. It was love at first sip and the former grande reserve of Aquitania winery (www.aquitania.cl), the Chilean pet project of French wine powerhouses Bruno Prats  (Chateau Cos D'Estournel) and Paul Pontallier (Chateau Margaux) along with Ghislain de Montgalfier (Bollinger) and Chilean partner, Felipe de Solminihac. The winery had stopped making Paul Bruno in 2000 to focus on other wines so their stock was coming from their collection.

Paul Bruno Cabernet Sauvignon 2000 quickly became our house wine--a great price (US$16/bottle) and such finesse. In a country of 14.5% wine fruit bombs, it was a tiny refuge of what I loved about French wines (balance, low alcohol, expression)--but from Chilean soil. We brough it into our cav and lives and drank it for over three years. It just kept getting better and better--longer, more complex, delicious.  

Then this past May, for a big party for my husband's art inauguration, I ordered a case for the festivities. We cracked open a bottle in anticipation and something tasted off. It wasn't the feared Brett; it wasn't corked. It wasn't oxidized. It was flat. It was like the life force had been sucked out of it. All that vivacity was gone. "Okay, maybe it's me" (you never know). So we tried another; and another. By the fifth bottle, I picked up the phone and called the winery to give them the bad news. "Yes", I said, "we have several wine cadeavors". They were understanding and took them back and replaced the case with another line.

I was seriously bummed!! I had to bid farewell to Paul Bruno. As I mourned its final days, I realized it was essentially the best practical lesson I had ever learned about when a wine "peaks"; when that curve finally comes down.

So in the vain of all eulogies, here are my parting words (as Irving Berling once wrote): "The song has ended, but the melody lingers on"...so perhaps here "The wine has ended but the taste will linger on..."

For many years, Sauvignon Blanc in Chile has been synonymous with the Casablanca Valley--that foggy valley off of Route 68 on the road to Valparaiso and Viña del Mar. Mostly dairy farms until 1982, winemaker Pablo Morandé was the first to pioneer and plant wines here, finding the climate very similar to Sonoma in California with sufficient sun but also cooler temperatures. He guessed right; and Chile 's first major white wine valley was born.

Fast forward 20 years. Casablanca is consolidated and booming with plastic, flashy-looking wineries alongside the highway like Veramonte or the faux bright white castle Indomita (which can, by the way, be seen from outer space). The wines are solid with their tutti frutti, kiwi aromas and nice acidity. They are a pleasant drink but something about them is too conforming, too predictable. I want something edgy. I want some tongue-dazzling acidity. I want dry mineral, flint, and rock notes. Okay, I will be up front. What I really want is  a Sancerre-style SB or new world-wise, a  Kiwi-style one. Give me some personality--and that acidity to rock your palate. A group of adventuresome boutique wineries have headed from the Casablanca valley further south and west heading for the coast in the newest wine appellation in Chile : San Antonio . An area that is appropriately called the "Chilean Outback"  by Matetic Vineyard's sommelier, Bruno Kuster , because of vast expanses of overbush, thistles, pines, eucalyptus, rugged coast, and an overall rustic feel, is producing Chile 's current showstopping Sauvignon Blancs; with vibrant acidity, concentration of fruit and mineral notes, and most importantly, unique expressions. Although most border on an alcohol level of 14.5, the high acidity and low pH let it come, go, and it is never an issue--until maybe you have kicked a bottle. 

Here's a round-up of my personal favorites (in their respective order). If you can get your hands on these in the States, by all means do. They are worth finding.

1. Casa Marin: Los Cipreses Vineyard 2006 : Maria Luz Marin, the winemaker of Casa Marin, is serious about her whites. A boutique winery only 4 kilometers from the sea, this Sauvignon Blanc comes from a high, cold, and windy hill with poor, sandy soils. The result? An elegant, long, tingling wine with high acidity and low pH. On the nose it has citric and mineral notes, rocks, almost a hint of the sea. In the mouth: acidity RULES. It dances and struts its stuff pulling up more of the lemon peel and minerality. Long finish and the glass is back at your mouth before you know. I am spitting this stuff? No way. This is pure lovin'.Ideal pairing: oysters from Chiloe ; or sashimi .

2. Ventolero 2005 : A pet project of winemaker extraordinaire Ignacio Recaubarren (does everything he touch turn to gold?) located in the micro valley slightly inland known as Leyda. This was last summer's discovery. The 2005 is still out and drinking now BETTER than last year. Why? High acidity and low pH means these Sauvignon Blancs can hold for easily a couple years and continue to get better. On the nose: I always smell flint or gun powder and lemon zest. In the mouth: d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s. it is an elegant wine. it has a lot to say but is not flashy. Medium length finish. Seconds?. Ideal pairing: Chilean razor clams; gazpacho.

3. Kingston Family Vineyards: Cariblanco 2006 : Okay, technically this is the cold far southwest corner of Casablanca but its climate, and wines, are similar in style to San Antonio. The investment of a Chilean-American family, the head winemaker, Bryon Kosuge (ex-winemaker at Saintbury in Carneros), definitely made a quantum leap with the 2006 Cariblanco (2004 had a LOT of residual sugar for my taste). Kingston is one of the few wineries in Chile making Sauvignon Blanc in stainless steel barrels which adds some body and complexity due to the stirring of the lees. The wine is very, very pale in color. On the nose: very citrusy, some floral and mineral notes. Very aromatic and inviting. In the mouth: the wine came to life with bright fruit and acidity. Elegant but understated. You can buy this in the US from them directly as they export everything (the irony!!! boohoo!!). To get on their mailing list go to: http://www.kingstonvineyards.com . Ideal pairing: ceviche or chevre-style goat chese 

4. Matetic Vineyards: EQ Sauvignon Blanc 2005 : This Sauvignon Blanc is dear to my heart as it is a style and taste I know very well. With our wine tours, we frequently visit Matetic so this Sauvignon Blanc and its personality have come one of our favorite house wines. Everyone simply loves it. The key? They kept it simple, honest, and fresh. On the nose you have lush fruit that ranges from ripe kiwis to grapefruit and some rocks (think of standing in their zen garden and grating a lemon). In the mouth: vibrant acidity with good volume (body) and a long, long, LONG finish. This is another example of a Sauvignon Blanc that can hold and combine with nearly any food (we have tried...). Ideal pairing: any seafood, goat cheese with apricot chutney, salad, anything really! 

5. Garcés Silva: Amayna 2006 : This Sauvignon Blanc style is quite atypical with the rest of the bunch because of its volume (body) in the mouth. It fills and rounds it out completely almost like viognier. On the nose, this year has concentrated fruit like pears, grapefruit, and kiwi with (a little more swishing) a distinct gun powder (flint) smell. In the mouth, it characteristic dense texture with concentrated with fruit and mineral notes. This is a "big" Sauvignon Blanc so bring on the appropriate food. Ideal pairing: seared bay scallops (with or without gratin)

6. Casa Marin: Laurel Vineyard 2006: The sister vineyard on the bottom part of the hill, this wine is made exactly the same as Los Cipreses but is totally different. Ask Maria Luz why and she will give you on answer: "Terroir". It's not as cold, windy, the fruit expresses itself differently. The result? In the nose: really ripe fruit like white peaches or lychees that gets mixed up with mineral notes. In the mouth: that dazzling acidity that for me characterizes Casa Marin (mostly terroir but also Maria Luz's talent) and intense fruit and mineral concentration. Long and delicious. Not the "younger" sister at all of Los Cipreses--we find that people either like one or the other. You can see where my first and foremost loyalty is though!.Ideal pairing: oysters; or tiradito (Peruvian sashimi laced with key limes and chilies)

7. Catralá: Sauvignon Blanc 2006: Another Casablanca candidate that is wedged into a cold outpost on the last ridge before Valparaiso , since they fit the boutique producer profile, I decided to include it. It also shares many of the characteristics that I look for in the above Sauvignon Blancs. It is straight forward, fresh, clean, and easy to drink. On the nose: lemon, grapefruit and minerality--it smells "clean" and vitalizing. In the mouth: it has crisp acidity and is refreshing. It goes down easily and is drinkable with food. Ideal pairing: mussels with saffron-tomato broth and fresh herbs

The Story

The basic story is one repeated time and again in South America: French know-how plus Chilean terroir equals outstanding wines—or in the case of El Principal winery, that is how the story originally started, but from their it morphed into its own.

The late Frenchman Jean-Paul Valette (former owner of Chateau Pavie in Saint-Emilion) came to Chile and fell in love with land, the people, and saw the potential to make incredible wines here. His ties led to a friendship and partnership with the Chilean Jorge Fontaine, the owner of Hacienda El Principal located in the far eastern part of Pirque (High Maipo Valley). Here they selected the best terroir and later planted and developed the existing vines, around 54 hectares of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, the ubiquitous Carmenere and Cabernet Franc. From this partnership El Principal S.A. was born, focusing exclusively, like most French chateaus, on only making the best quality wines. They planted Bordeaux-style (high density) for three years and in a tragic twist of fate, Jean-Paul died shortly before the 1999 harvest (one of Chile’s finest).

However, given the Valette family’s devotion to wine (and Bordelaise history), his son Patrick Valette (now a very prestigious wine consultant in Chile), continued his father’s work. The key to their success? Make these wines like the great ones in France, both in technique and style. The Valette and Fontaine families recently dissolved the society, selling to Döhle Latinamerika, the new German parent company. Despite the acquisition, the focus has not wandered—in fact, El Principal now has the financing to expand its vineyard plantings, acquire new (and better) equipment, more French barrels, etc. etc. Its long term goal of producing one of the finest “New World” wines grows stronger. And after our visit on a rainy Monday, we definitely believe it!

The Wines: Love at First Sight—and Sip

We arrived at El Principal around noon with gray clouds hugging the Andes foothills and a steady drizzle of rain. The main road and entrance to the hard-to-find winery was closed due to work on the road. However, after some meandering we found a caretaker who opened the secondary gate, making our way through a muddy “trail” back to the hacienda-cum-winery. “Maestros”, or Chilean handy men, we pounding away at various projects by mandate of the new owner. We met with the current winemaker, Gonzalo Guzmán, a young, enthusiastic Chilean in a bare bones meeting room with a large wooden dining table and worn leather chairs. As in all of Chile at this time of year, there was a space heater to take the chill off. The entire back of the room was paneled in plate glass—and with good reason—the view of the Andes foothills, the vineyards, and terraces could be viewed in their emerald green splendor. The hills looked soft, like covered with evergreen plush velvet and the mistiness of the clouds shrouding the hills, gave it a mysterious, enchanting look.

Well, on to the wines. I will cut to the chase here! They were served a little cold given the day and the temperature of the cellar. Gonzalo decanted both of them and with the little space heater, they slowly came up to their ideal temperature (16 C). To give you a little background on the wines, for those of you (like myself) always craving to know how they get to their final product. The vines are planted on the piedmont of the Andes on alluvial soils facing North (which is necessary in the Southern hemisphere for sufficient sun exposure and ripening). In order to get the tremendous concentrations El Principal is known for their vineyard management techniques includes shoot thinning, a green harvest, canopy management, crop thinning, hand-picking and table grape sorting before crushing. Their miniscule yield (of 4,000 /hectare) is strictly controlled in order to achieve fruit's balance and the perfect ripeness. 

In the winery, all the grapes are hand-picked and the berries hand-selected for quality before going into the tanks for crushing. A pre-fermentative maceration is done at low temperatures (8 C) for about 4 days in order to maintain the aromas (hence the fresh fruit nose you will find in these wines). After, the alcoholic fermentation is carried out at standard controlled temperatures.  Other macerations during fermentation and post-fermentation last approximately 21 days. All the malolactic fermentation is carried out in new French oak barrels (100%), with aging continuing for 16 months. Batonnage (stirring of the wine gently in the barrels) is conducted every week during the first 6 months. To get to market is easily 3-4 years, like most premium wines in Chile nowadays. 

Tasting Notes:

El Principal 2001: The fruit rules here—and when I say fruit think of walking through a farmers market munching on fresh black plums and black currants—no jams or canned fruit in sight! It is alive and kicking, as is its vibrating acidity, and assertive yet not overpowering tannins that give the wine great structure. Everything is so well integrated that the overall effect in the palate is freshness and elegance, renewed with each sip with its tingling acidity (making the bottle disappear unfortunately way too quickly). Given this an extremely concentrated wine, the 2001 is almost on the border of being too young to drink. The best bet (and what we ultimately decided to do) was to buy a case and see how the wine evolves. My response upon asking the winemaker what made this wine so incredible was, “Obviously great vineyard management…but honestly, it’s the terroir”. There you go.

Memorias 2000: Very similar to El Principal but less “charged” in terms of concentration and length. Made from the same grapes, the same style, the same vineyards, just less extracted and concentrated so simplicity and balance are the name of the game. Perhaps after trying El Principal this may seem like the “little brother” being less impressive and dramatic but it still maintains that editorial line of elegance, which for me is what characterizes these wines. A wine that could be ready to drink now; or at least in the short-to-medium term—but for El Principal this could still mean up to 5 years. So once again, buy a case and settle in to see what happens.

Production and Where to Find

1999: 3000 cases
2000: 2000 cases
2001: 4800 cases

As you can see, production is very limited and within Chile only to retail shops and very fine restaurants.  Your best bet is to call the winery directly and order a couple cases: www.elprincipal.cl This is one of Chile’s reference wines, specifically if you are interested in knowing what the potential is of Chilean soils and in particular, High Maipo Valley Cabernet-Carmenere. Absolutely inspiring.

Last night we had the ultimate wine-food pairing task: Indian food. I find that wine is often shrouded by this highly condimented cuisine so I was at a loss of what wine to choose that would stand up to something as "assertive" as the three curries I had prepared. Since moving to our new house, our wine cellar is still full of boxes, making it near impossible to find anything or even jog my memory what is there! At first (blind) grab, I pulled out a Casas del Bosque Syrah 2003--one of those wines I vaguely remember buying but had forgotten that it was in my collection. I then recalled the glowing reviews Chilean Wine Journalist Patricio Tapia (Planetavinos) had given this wine, specifically the 2003 vintage, which was ultimately the decisive factor in buying it. Well, why not, let's try it! I had no idea what to expect--just prayed for no hedonistic fruit bombs, overoaking and some minute level of balance. What a surprise I was in for...

I (and everyone else at the dinner) loved this wine, a total delight. One word to sum it up? F-R-E-S-H. It had a fresh aroma with lots of red fruit and those slightly black peppery notes on the nose with a hint of mint that for me are characteristic of these "cold weather" Syrahs coming from that particular cold corner of the Casablanca Valley (like Kingston Family Vineyard's Bayo Oscuro) or the San Antonio Valley (like Matetic Vineyards). In the mouth, the acidity was mouthwatering and invited me to sip and sip again until the glass had disappeared (very rapidly I may add). In terms of texture, it had enough tannins to stand up to the Indian food but once again, the acidity cleaned the palate and was refreshing from the flavor buzz that had overtaken our tastebuds. My only complaint? I hadn't bought another bottle! BOOOO!

It is definitely a wine worth trying for its purely pleasurable experience--and is also worth tasting this interesting area of Chilean coastal vineyards.

Oh, and the cost? How about a cool US$10. Oh yeah.

For those who have been following the Argentine wine industry over the past years, you may be aware that there is much more out there than Malbec, and well, more Malbec. Sparkling wine powerhouses like Chandon have maintained investments in Mendoza for more than 4 decades. Local grapes like Torrontes and Bonarda, although very rustic, also are part of the local grape inventory. The age of blends, assemblages, meritages has also fallen upon Mendoza, but this time we are starting to see more out-of-the-box--starting with Spanish grapes like Tempranillo.

Leading the pack is Bodega O. Fournier, located in the Uco Valley, about one hour south of the city of Mendoza. O.Fournier is the Argentine investment of a Spanish winery headed by the Madrid native José Manuel Ortega. Its solid winemaking, state-of-the-art technology, and privileged soils (here they use bush vines) and location in the Uco Valley are the formula for its base success. But what about its wines?

We have visited the winery on a few occasions and drank their wines in both tastings and for personal pleasure (in fact, last night we polished off another bottle of the BCrux 2003 which went quite well with hummus). I would qualify the editorial line of their wines as: serious, pure, modern (in its style), and even a little daring--they go out on a limb (sometimes with blend, sometimes with the balance) and obviously  not everyone will take to this wine style. However, the wines always have a unique personality and are all very well made.

I just got a heads up on some recent ratings from Wine Spectator and Decanter on O. Fournier wines that I would like to share. These are now being distributed slowly in the US. They are worth looking for and trying--the BCrux is a great value wine and the ACrux 2003, well, that it may just make you swoon.

WINE SPECTATOR (James Moleworth), August 11, 2006

ACrux (Uco Valley) 2002 93 points US$42

Very flashy, modern-styled wine, with layers of mocha and spice-infused toast leading the way for boysenberry, blackberry and fig fruit. Shows additional tar, mineral, graphite and even violet notes through the rich but racy finish. Tempranillo, Malbec and Merlot. Drink now through 2010. 600 cases imported.

ACrux (Uco Valley) 2003 92 points US$45

A flamboyant style, with lots of bacony, spicy toast woven into the blueberry and boysenberry. Yet stays focused, with the fruit shining through on the lengthy finish. Great mouthfeel. Drink now through 2008. 1,000 cases made.

BCrux (Uco Valley) 2003 91 points US$24

Very dark, but pure, with cassis and blackberry fruit layered with vanilla, mocha, mineral and tar notes. Long, dark, plush finish stays nicely focused thanks to fine-grained tannins. Tempranillo, Malbec, Merlot and Syrah. Drink now through 2008. 1,000 cases imported.  

DECANTER (Steven Spurrier), September 2006

ACrux (Mendoza, Argentina) 2002

“A top performer, Bodegas O. Fournier´s 60% Tempranillo/35% Malbec/5% Merlot blend has all the New World benchmarks of dark colour, intense berry fruit, marvellously ripe tannins and a lift of acidity. But it adds an Old World elegance and length to a wine both succulent and serious.”

Friday night, innocent cosmopolitans with friends at the Ritz’s new martini lounge led to an impromptu dinner party at my apartment. With freshly made Moussaka lurking in my oven and no company to share it with, I decided to invite over my drinking companions and have them partake in this intense Mediterranean dish accompanied by some well-chosen Argentine and Chilean wines. Although the whole event was completely spontaneous, the wines selected ended up being quite coordinated. If you could characterize the central wine theme, perhaps it could be coined as New World “Fun” Wines. “Fun” is one of those vague words like “interesting”, that doesn’t necessarily define anything. In this case, fun referred to the distinct personality of the wines and that they all said something about where it came from and/or how they were made. They were all non-committal price wise, none of them passing the US$20 mark, and most importantly, they were an absolute delight to drink, which well, in good company certainly makes wine taste better.

Alta Vista Grande Reserve 2004 Malbec, Terroir Selection (Argentina, Mendoza)

Alta vista is a French-Argentinean venture seated in the Luján de Cuyo area of Mendoza, specifically (for those familiar with Mendoza), in the area called Vistalba at around 1,000 meters above sea level. Alta vista is a perfect example of French know-how well employed with a local winemaking and vineyard management team to produce wines that express Mendocino soil and climate, focused heavily on Malbec. This Malbec is a terroir blend meaning that 54% of its grapes come from its vineyard plots in Vistalba and 46% from the Valle de Uco, about 1 hour south of the city. In 2004, the grapes from Vistalba were very mature and create a noticeable volume in the mouth and long finish. The grapes from Uco, known for its freshness in general, gave the wine a general (nice) roundness and freshness. For being a 2004, a very, VERY young wine, it was quite balanced—no tannins out of check here—which is noticeable as Malbec can be tannic at times. Hence, it is the terroir that produces naturally in the fruit these soft, lovely tannins. In terms of flowery adjectives, I cannot remember much (especially after several cosmos) of the taste other then I will remember this wine as utterly enjoyable and at one point, while sautéing zucchini as a side for the Moussaka, stopping with a winemaker friend to comment that it had a “soul”.

Gillmore Meritage 1999 (Chile, Maule)

Opened mid-way through dinner (now midnight, yes we eat late here!), this wine was quite a departure from the former bottle. Gillmore is part of the Tabonitaja winery, located in the southern Maule valley, about 300 kilometers south of Santiago. The Maule has a centuries-old tradition of winemaking, although mostly in the país variety, red table wine. A special edition wine produced in 1999, a very good year for both the Maule valley and Chile, this wine was one of only 2,500 bottles produced and sold. A blend of Carignan, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine was a break from most Chilean reds with only 13.5% alcohol. It was drinkable, went down easy and was perfect for drinking now. I personally found the acidity to be a hair off (which can be a general trait of Maule wines due to the cooler weather and tendency to “pick green” to avoid early rains), or rather, not totally integrated into the “flow” and “feel” of the wine on the palate. It was representative though definitely of its land and was well made so it is more a stylistic comment than anything.

Coyam 2002 (Chile, Colchagua)

Now onto a dessert of fried empanadas stuffed with dulce de leche (milk caramel) and the local nutty-tasting fruit paste, Lucuma, which I somehow had ready-made in my freezer, we opened the last trophy of the evening, Coyam 2002. Coyam, from Viñedos Orgánicos Emiliana, is one of my favorite wines in Chile and one of those lovely US$20 wines that is solid and maintains the price-quality ratio perfectly. Coyam means “Chilean Oak” in the native language and also happens to be the trees that delimit the parameters of the Los Robles vineyard in the Colchagua valley. Coyam is made from Carmenere, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Mouvedre grapes. I love the addition of Mouvedre to soften and round out this robust blend (note apart: these lesser-known Rhone grapes, such as Mouvedre and Marsanne, sneak into different VOE blends as they are the closet love of Emiliana winemaker Alvaro Espinoza). What surprised me though, was that had the 2002 vintage in our wine cellar. While certainly not a bad year, 2002 (at least for Coyam) was a “shy”, unremarkable vintage that was wedged between two heavyweights: 2001 and 2003. Coyam 2001, as indicated in an earlier post about “G”, got the best grapes and was one of those wines that made critics (and consumers) swoon. 2003 in Chile was a blockbuster harvest with many wines now  scoring 90+ points in Wine Spectator—quality, complexity, and longevity went through the roof—Coyam included. I am still not sure if was the time of night (now the madrugada, or early morning hours), all the previous flavors (and alcohol) at that point but Coyam 2002 came and went very pleasantly but without really leaving much of an impression.  That’s okay though. Feeling inspired yesterday, I made a hybrid Texas chili so we are going to give the 2003 a test drive tonight.

I recently had the chance to try “G”, the new super-Chilean wine from Emiliana Vineyards, Chile’s pioneer organic and first fully certified biodynamic vineyards. The private tasting, held in (parent) holding company Viña Concha y Toro’s wine store, Vinos CyT, was in the company of the biodynamic grape guru, winemaker Alvaro Espinoza. G, whose name is derived from the Greek root meaning earth, alludes to the palpable terroir that one should find in their glass. I was interested to see where G would fall in this “super wine” category that has proliferated in Chile during the past two years, many of which are oriented for the US market.

G comes from the vineyard’s best lots in Los Robles, located in the Colchagua Valley about 2 hours south of Santiago. Colchagua, for those not familiar with the valley, is known for its “big” reds, mostly Cabernet and some Syrah, Merlot, and Carmenere. The valley runs east to west wedged between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific coastal range, a geographical situation that creates good ventilation and an area drenched in sun, which is not unlike Napa. In fact, it shares with its North American cousin similar punch and alcohol levels (15 degrees here is not uncommon!).

G is a blend of five varietals: Syrah (55%), and equal percentages (15%) of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, and Merlot. Although the first harvest was in 2001 from the actual lots they are using now for G, only after the 2003 harvest (an excellent year for Chile) was G finally put into production. (Note apart: all those outstanding lots in 2001 went into Emiliana’s organic Coyam 2001, which has been declared a slam dunk by various journalists here). 2003 also coincided with the international certification of the vineyard as biodynamic. Alvaro told me that G’s objective is to produce a wine that expresses this biodynamic system and show the land of this specific nature which nurtures and produces these grapes. Let’s see.

The tasting: We tried the 2003 vintage, the first and only year released at present. Trying a fine wine this young almost seems like a sort of infanticide--like judging a baby and deciding how he/she will be at 20! The color is a deep, inky purple with long legs. The nose was a little closed upon first sniff so we swirled for several minutes in order to open up the aromas. For me, and excuse my lack of opulent wine journalist vocabulary, the nose hinted at prunes, black berries, and almost a whiff of dust (like a tractor just drove by—is that terroir?). In the mouth, it is much softer and more balanced than I expected for a wine weighing in at 15 degrees alcohol. It had a very long finish and did show complexity. Alvaro thought it was a wine ideal for aging at least 5-10 years.

Relevant info: Available this year in the US market at a cool US$90 (approx.)

My thoughts: An agreeable “drink” which could pair well with grilled meat, wild mushrooms, and “smoky” ingredients like bacon. The key is to keep it simple and not detract from the complexity of the wine. The dish also needs some amount of fat for the overall power of this wine (hence the meat, actually lamb chops could fare well here). My outstanding issue with this wine is its alcohol level. One could argue and perceive it as well balanced, but the truth was my palate still felt worn out after a glass, which I decided not spit (this is the “true” test, or prueba de fuego, as they say in Chile). While it is normal to find many Colchagua wines that are “big” and “heavy”, it was the sensation of having drunk a cocktail, not a glass of wine. Another round was out of the question if I was to drive home in a sober state. While it is classified as an ultra premium wine, I am still not totally convinced whether or not I tried a true terroir wine that spoke of those lots in Los Robles (that is, what made it exclusively taste and speak of Los Robles and not just a refined Colchagua style?). The line nowadays in how the word terroir is understood and used has blurred significantly. And the price tag, well that is a question of what the market perceives and ultimately will bear.