WTN (wine troll note): A Chilean anonymity

Loma Larga Quinteto 2006 - Chile, Acongacua
c.15€; 14,5% abv; Merlot 42%, Cab Franc 34%, Syrah 21%, Cab Sauv 2%, Malbec 1%. The Syrah and Merlot was aged in once and twice used French oak; the rest in stainless steel. The smell seems like a stereotypical Chilean wine made from any grape at all: sweet, jammy, dark fruit with a blackcurrant leaf and rhubarb sharpness. Rich, fruity, sweet and ripe, but with adequate acidity and tannin which give this a juicy and fresh rather than cloying finish. Also, I am happy that the oak is not obvious. But this is still rather ho-hum.

Forgive the coat and fangs, but why do so many Chileans, no matter what grapes go in the wine or where in Chile they are made, have such a similar flavor profile? Is some yeast used there that is particularly popular? There is only one producer that I have tried that doesn't conform to a stylistic stereotype, Clos Ouvert. Perhaps this reflects more the Finnish availability (oh, wait a minute, this might be too un-trolly to say) rather than acutal practices, but from my sampling I have found the country to be uniform and therefore dull. Anyone else than Clos Ouvert make interesting stuff there that sticks out from the masses?

Nobody taking the bait over here? My take on the few Chilean wines which I have drunk is that they are technically well made to the specifications laid down by a marketing department. Not surprising therefore that there is so little distinctive personality, because most of the marketeers will have had the same training. Chilean wine is a big yawn for me, hence the few bottles from there which I am tempted to buy.

I gave up on Chile a while back, and anything I have tasted at local wine tastings confirms winemaking by numbers! I still enjoy my selected reds from Arg...Achaval-Ferrer, Weinert but even there in Argentina many new wine releases from unknown names can be "international" and dicey!!

[David M. Bueker]

I would not be quite so cynical, as I think Chileans aere trying to build an export market, and catering to the mass tastes is how that is done. Perhaps, once things are more firmly established, artisinal producers will spring up, but right now I doubt there is a meaningful export market (perhaps not even export channels) for geek-friendly wines from Chile.

I have been tasting Chilean wines for the last week (for an article) and I have been moderately impressed. I have not gotten to the Cabernets and Cab blends yet. But I did find a few surprisingly nice wines. Veranda Chardonnay and Pinot Noir stand out. The '08 Veranda Chardonnay (Bio Bio) was very nice and their '08 Pinot Noir (Bio Bio) could masquerade as a village Cotes de Nuit. Both, I thought, were very Burgundian. Santiago Station (NV) was decent. The '10 Natura Sauvignon Blanc (Casablanca)from Emiliana was a standout wine. There were several good Carmenere, The '09 "Root: 1" and '08 Medalla Real from Santa Rita were memorable. I will have a complete writeup soon. I am not a big fan, but will buy some of these in the future, particularly the Verandas.

I'd add Casa Marin as a possible candidate for procuding wine with some individuality. They have an excellent Sauvignon, a very good and rather special Riesling as well as a couple of delicious, although probably a bit too oaky for Otto, Pinot Noirs. In fact I told Maria Luz Marin when she was in Stockholm a few weeks ago that a slightly more careful oak treatment would do her Pinots good. She told me they have indeed been using less new oak and I agreed that they were now much more balanced than three years ago, when I first tasted her Pinots.
Cheers,
Anders