When I started this blog 8 years ago, I recall feeling as if I was on the outside looking in because so many of the wine bloggers I admired seemed to have an endless supply of sample wines.  Wine I did begin to receive wine samples it started as a trickle . These days it feels more like  a flood!

You might think this is the proverbial  “good problem” to have.   I certainly don’t feel that way.  In fact, I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed.

While my passion for tasting and writing about wines is as strong as ever, my day job is busier than ever.  As a result, I’ve had less time than ever to taste and write about my beloved wine.  Life has indeed gotten in the way so to speak.

Okay….I’m done whining.  What to do?

I’m reminded of an old saying my mentor is fond of…”How do you eat an elephant? Answer: One bite at a time!”

My first “bite” is to gather like samples  and do one post rather than several.  As I perused my sample rack, I noticed I had nine wines from Chile. With that many wines , I decided to get some help from my friends at the Pacific Point Wine Tasting Club (a local wine tasting club my wife and I started in 2010).

I “pre-tasted” the wines to gather my tasting notes, then we had a Chilean themed wine tasting party! Perfect!

Six of the wines were from Concha y Toro, Latin America’s leading producer that occupies an outstanding position among the world’s most important wine companies.  Their portfolio includes a wide range of successful brands at every price point, from the top of the range Don Melchor and Almaviva to the flagship brand Casillero del Diablo.  Three were from Emiliana Organic Vineyards, which was named Chile’s Winery of the Year in 2015.  They are currently the world’s largest organic winery, with over 800 hectares of certified organic vineyards across Chile.

Wines Tasted

Concha Y Toro Gran Reserva Serie Riberas is a special selection of Gran Reserva wines coming from vineyards located close to different river basins. This translates into unique, distinctive fresher wines.

2016 Concha y Toro Chardonnay Gran Reserva Serie Riberas – Chile, Central Valley
Color – Pale yellow
Aromas – Baked apple, lemon cream, hazelnut, tropical fruit, and vanilla
Body – Full-bodied, fruit forward, and creamy with vibrant acidity
Taste – Apricot, Meyer lemon, melon, pineapple and nutmeg with a nice kiss of salinity
Finish – Medium-long

100% Chardonnay aged 10 months in French oak barrels (10% new; 90 % 4th use). Very nice QPR at $17!

14.3% abv|SRP – $17 (89-90 pts.)

2015 Concha y Toro Carménère Gran Reserva Serie Riberas – Chile, Rapel Valley, Cachapoal Valley, Peumo
Color – Opaque purple
Aromas – Cassis, plum, blackberry, sandal wood, smoke and graphite
Body – Medium-bodied with well-integrated velvety tannins and bright acidity
Taste – Cassis, plum, blackberry mocha, and vanilla with a hint of warm spice and accented with a savory note.
Finish – Lingering

Blend of 95% Carmenere and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged 13 months in Barrels and 5,000 litre foudres

14.5% abv| $17 (89-90 pts.)

2016 Concha y Toro Cabernet Sauvignon Serie Riberas Gran Reserva Ribera del Tinguiririca – Chile
Color – Nearly opaque garnet
Aromas – Cassis, black cherry, blackberry, violets, cedar wood, violet and a bit of green pepper
Body – Medium-bodied and concentrated with very good acidity, well-integrated soft tannins and a silky texture
Taste – Cassis, plum, blackberry, dark chocolate and a bit of vanilla
Finish – Medium

Blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3.5% Merlot and 3.5% Syrah. Aged 13 months in French oak barrels and foudres

13.5% abv| SRP – $17 (88-89 pts.)

Emiliana Natura Wines are among the top organic wines that are produced from the purest, healthiest and highest quality, organically grown grapes.

2016 Emiliana Chardonnay Un-Oaked Natura – Chile, Casablanca Valley
Color – Pale straw yellow
Aromas – Green apple, tropical fruit, citrus, wet stone, and a hint of peach
Body – Light-bodied, very fresh, and persistent with a pure character
Taste – Yellow apple, lime cream, lemon, peach, pineapple flavors with a bit of wet stone minerality.
Finish – Medium plus

100% Chardonnay;100% organically grown grapes|13.6% abv| SRP – $10|Sample (88-89- pts.)

2016 Emiliana Natura  Rosé – Chile, Rapel Valley
Color – Very pale salmon
Aromas – Red fruit, citrus and an appealing bit of musk
Body – Medium-bodied and fresh with a supple texture
Taste – Morello cherry, raspberry, and lime zest
Finish – Medium

Blend of 40% Syrah, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot| 100% organically grown grapes| 12.1% abv|SRP ~$11|Sample (88-89 pts.)

2015 Emiliana Carménère Natura – Chile, Rapel Valley, Colchagua Valley
Color – Translucent dark ruby
Aromas – Black cherry, smoke, eucalyptus, leather
Body – Medium-bodied, fresh, and focused with well-integrated tannins and a pure character
Taste – Black cherry, chocolate, and baked plum,and subtle spice
Finish – Medium

100% Carmenere; 100% organically grown grapes |13.9% abv%|SRP ~ $10|Sample (88-89 pts.)

Casillero Del Diablo is Concha Y Toro’s flagship brand.  Their thesis is that high quality wines can be made inexpensively.  The brand’s name  in based on a legend.  In the closing years of the 19th century Don Melchor de Concha y Toro discovered that his most treasured wines had been pilfered from the “casillero” (cellar) beneath his family home. To discourage further theft, the enterprising Don spread a rumor that his deepest, darkest cellars were haunted by the devil. Today, the original Concha y Toro family estate, complete with its Devil’s Cellar, is Chile’s leading tourist destination!

2016 Concha y Toro Chardonnay Casillero del Diablo Reserva – Chile, Casablanca Valley
Color – Pale lemon yellow
Aromas – Tropical fruit, peach, roast hazelnut, toasty oak, and a hint of butter
Body – Medium bodied,and good structure with lively acidity
Taste – Peach, apricot, vanilla, citrus and pineapple with hints of brown spice and toasty oak
Finish – Medium

100% Chardonnay| 13.5% abv|SRP – $11|Sample (87-88 pts.)

2016 Concha y Toro Merlot Casillero del Diablo Reserva – Chile, Central Valley
Color – Translucent purple
Aromas – Dark fruits, espresso, chocolate, dried herb, vanilla and cedar wood
Body – Medium-bodied with soft tannins and lively acidity
Taste – Black currant, black berries, and plum with subtle spice and chocolate flavors
Finish – Medium

100% Merlot|13.5% abv |SRP – $11|Sample (87 pts.)

2015 Concha y Toro Carménère Casillero del Diablo Reserva – Chile, Central Valley
Color – Opaque violet
Aromas – Black cherry, red currants, smoky dried herbs, green pepper, dark roast espresso
Body – Medium-bodied with soft tannins and tangy acidity
Taste – Black cherry, plum, bittersweet chocolate, espresso and subtle spice
Finish – Medium

100% Carmenere; 60% of the wine is aged in French & American oak for 9 months, while the remainder is aged in stainless steel.

13.5% abv|SRP – $11|Sample (87-88 pts.)

About Chilean Wine

Chile has been a wine-producing country since the first European settlers arrived in the mid-16th Century. The original vines, to make sacramental wine, were brought by Catholic missionaries directly from Spain or via Peru or California. The Mission grape variety – known here as Pais – was widely planted during this time, and became the mainstay of country wines for domestic consumption. It is most common in Maule and Bio Bio in the south, mainly grown by older farmers making field blends, but it is beginning to feature in many high-quality bottlings.

It wasn’t until the 19th Century that viticulture began to expand in Chile, mainly due to the spread of wealth associated with mining in the Atacama Desert. European trends started to infiltrate Santiago, and a wine industry sprang up to the south of the city, around the Maipo Valley. Wine estates were built, with the styles of both wine and architecture heavily modeled on those of France. The estate vineyards of Concha y Toro, Cousino Macul and Santa Rita were established in this time.

Throughout the 20th Century, Chilean wine was limited to a domestic market, but a push toward quality in the latter half of the century saw an uptake in the international market. Whereas Chilean winemakers had traditionally used tanks and barrels made of beech wood, in the 1980s stainless-steel tanks and oak barrels were introduced, marking the start of a technology-driven era.

Occupying a thin strip down the western coast of the continent, it is home to a wide range of terroirs, and an equally wide range of wine styles.

Like many New World countries Chile has adopted a signature grape variety; here it is Carmenère, once widely grown in Bordeaux. It was thought to be extinct following the European phylloxera outbreaks of the 19th Century, but was rediscovered in Chile in the 1990s. (Source)

My Takeaways

I’m a fan of Chilean wine.  Two of my most memorable wine last year were from Chile,  the 2015 Concha y Toro Chardonnay Marqués de Casa Concha and  the 2016 Concha y Toro Sauvignon Blanc Terrunyo Los Boldos Vineyard Block 5.  I thought both wines showcased the diversity of Chilean terroir and both offered tremendous value.

For that reason, I was looking forward to tasting these wines.  And seeing what my fellow Pacific Point Wine Tasting Club member thought of the wines.

• The tasting offered an opportunity for dive into Carménère wines.  Carménère is to Chile as Malbec is to Argentina.  The grape, which originated in the Bordeaux region of France is a distant relative of Merlot.  But it never really found its place in Bordeaux, and is now considered the national grape of Chile.  All of the Carmeneres had smoky notes to one degree or another for me.  I found that quite appealing and will definitely be considering Carmenere for my red wine of choice for BBQ season!
• The Natura lines of wine were a hit with the group. I thought the wines showed a purity of fruit that may be unique to wines made from organic grapes.
• Whenever our wine tasting club get together, I pay attention to which bottles are emptied first. In this case, the Gran Reserva Serie Riberas, and the Cabernet Sauvignons  were the first bottles to be emptied. 
• Chile is most well-known for its red wines, but give Chilean Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay a try.
• If you’re a fan of cool-climate wines, look for wines from the Casablanca, Leyda, San Antonio and Limarí ­valleys regions of Chile.
• It’s hard to beat Chile for under $15 red wines in terms of value for the price. They make great weeknight wines!

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