8 Bottles Of Sauvignon Blanc From Chile (that You Should Try!)
May 17, 2010 by Neil
Last week, we participated in the latest online blogger tasting from our friends at Wines of Chile. As always, it was a blast: good wine, good information via webchat with the eight winemakers and great comments and feedback from our fellow wine bloggers. A good time was had by all (and I’m still recovering). Read on for the lowdown…
I had received my tasting kit several weeks ago, and all eight bottles were chilled and ready to go. While I had hoped to have some of the suggested food prepared (ceviche and the like), my mid-week work schedule proved to be an insurmountable obstacle to the preparation or acquisition of said grub, so I settled for some nuts and crackers. I laid out the glasses and bottles, got out the corkscrew and logged on. The tasting, moderated by wine educator and Master Sommelier Fred Dexheimer, had begun.
Here, in order, are the eight wines we tasted and our thoughts…
First up was the 2009 Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc Reserva from the Casablanca Valley. A nice way to start the tasting as this one is a great value wine at $10.99. The Casablanca Valley is a recent discovery, first planted in the 1980’s. It’s a cool-climate, coastal region known for crisp, fresh Sauvignon Blanc and this one is both crisp and fresh. A big nose of grapefruit and that continues right on through to the palate. Easy-drinking, slightly sweet, a little bit of peach. A good summer drinker.
Next was one of my favorites of the tasting… the 2009 Ventisquero ‘Queulat’ Sauvignon Blanc from the Casablanca Valley. The nose was delicate; citrus notes and some interesting green bean and chalky minerality. On the palate, there are flavors of melon and a little bit of lemon peel, but with an underlying chalkiness that gives it a real creamy mouthfeel. This one had a nice balance, and a soft, subtle complexity that really set it apart. $17.
The 2009 Undurraga ‘T.H.’ Sauvignon Blanc from the Leyda Valley came next. The Leyda Valley is also a relatively new wine region, and is a few miles from the Pacific coast. This has a nice nose of citrus skins and a tinge of green herbs. On the palate, subtle lemon meringue and lime with a hint of that bell pepper flavor that I’ve begun to expect from Chilean wine in general. $16.
2009 Valdivieso ‘Leyda Vineyard’ Sauvignon Blanc ($22) was one I had been looking forward to, as it touts the fact that it is wild fermented (the winemaker doesn’t add any yeast- only naturally occurring yeasts are involved in the fermentation process). Unfortunately it was oxidized; it was funky and tasted like Spanish sherry. The Wines of Chile folks are sending out replacement bottles, so I’ll get back to you on this one.
Next up was the 2009 Santa Rita Medalla Real Sauvignon Blanc from the Leyda Valley. This one was really green on the nose; lots of herbs, along with grapefruit and gooseberry. The palate was also gooseberries galore along with some yellow grapefruit and minerals. A lot of the bloggers thought it was very New Zealand-esque. Twenty bucks.
The 2009 Cono Sur ‘Organic’ Sauvignon Blanc was next, from the San Antonio Valley. I’m told the San Antonio Valley is the greater valley of which the Leyda Valley is a part of. We’ve talked about Cono Sur before; these guys deliver at great value prices (they have a Chilean Pinot Noir that is quite tasty for under $14!) This one is $13 and raised quite a ruckus on our live chat as everyone unanimously agreed that it tasted like a ‘grassy creamsicle’!
(Last time I checked, the folks at Popsicle that make the creamsicle don’t do a ‘grassy’ flavor, but I’m going to suggest it to them right away.) Tropical notes on the nose and in addition to the creamsicle taste, there were flavors of sweet honeysuckle and a bit of a mineral vibe. A fun, easy drinker.
I was happy to pop the cork on the 2009 Haras de Pirque ‘Estate’ Sauvignon Blanc from the Maipo Valley. We’ve tasted this wine in the past, and have also enjoyed the Haras ‘Character’ Cabernet. The Maipo Valley is one of Chile’s oldest wine regions and stretches all the way from the coast up into the foothills of the Andes. The Haras Sauv Blanc is consistently good- elegant and balanced. This ‘09 is no exception; a good nose of tropical and citrus with a pinch of herbs, and a palate of grapefruit, meyer lemon, melons and some sort of yellow pear. A tasty offering for about thirteen bucks.
Last and certainly not least was the 2009 Casa Silva ‘Cool Coast’ Sauvignon Blanc from the Colchagua Valley. Colchagua is in the southernmost portion of the Rapel Valley and is one of Chile’s best-known wine regions. The Casa Silva vineyard sits in the narrow gap between the Andes and the coastal mountains. This wine was great; one of my ‘top two’ of the night. The nose was a sweet, floral, tropical, pineapple treat and the palate was a great mix of pineapple, key lime/mandarin orange and minerals with a tinge of effervescence. Refreshing acidity, but balanced and elegant with a nice finish. A bit pricey at $22-$23, but worth it, in my humble opinion.
With summer around the corner, its the perfect time to dive into Chilean Sauvignon Blanc. Cheers!!
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