Weekly Saturday Tasting

Wines of Chile

Saturday, January 13th
1:00 - 3:00

This weekend we’re going to explore some of our favorite wines from Chile. The country spans 2700 miles North to South between the Pacific Ocean and the Andes Mountains. The topography is very favorable to viticulture, and despite the fact that Chile is only 100 miles wide, most climatic variation in the wine-growing regions happens from east to west, rather than from north to south. The Pacific, with its Antarctic Humboldt Current, brings cooling breezes to coastal vineyards, while the sheltering presence of the Coastal mountain range makes Chile's Central Valley relatively warm and dry. Along the eastern edge of the country, in the foothills of the Andes, high altitudes and abundant meltwater rivers make for a different terroir again. This has led the country’s wineries to be able to work with a wide variety of grapes. On Saturday, we’ll taste our favorite Chilean white in a Sauvignon Gris, a mutation of Sauvignon Blanc that usually runs a bit richer and more voluptuous than its parent grape, with some nice melon and mango tones joining Sauvignon Blanc’s classic citrus framework. Then we’ll move on to a unique Chilean wine in a 100% Cinsault, a grape most well known as a background blending grape in Frances' Rhone Valley, but done here as the main attraction, producing a refreshing, light red wine. We will then move on to what has become Chile's signature wine grape - Carmenère. Once widely grown in Bordeaux, Carmenère was thought to have gone extinct in the 19th Century, but it was rediscovered in Chile in the 1990s, where it was initially thought to be a poorer performing mutation of Merlot. Once properly identified, they were able to much more successfully grow the grape, and established their iconic wine style. Finally, we’ll have a lovely Reserve level Cabernet Sauvignon from one of Chile’s most respected wineries. We hope you can join us!
 
Cousino Macul ‘Isidora’ Sauvignon Gris
Maipo Valley, Chile
 
De Martino 'Gallardia' Cinsault
Itata Valley, Chile
 
Lapostolle 'Grand Selection' Carmenère
Colchagua Vally, Chile
 
Lapostolle ‘Cuvée Alexandre’ Cabernet Sauvignon
Apalta Valley, Chile