First of all, I want to thank Fred Dexheimer, MS, for his great presentation of "Chile's Best Kept Secrets". The two whites and six reds we tasted were enough to make the entire day worthwhile.
For whites, we started off with Meli Dry Riesling 2010. Very dry, with a slight hint of petrol on the nose, and lots of citrus lime on the palate. Were I guessing, I would have picked this as being from Australia; the dryness and citrus fit that style. I haven't had enough Chilean Rieslings yet to pick out a distinctive style. I admit, this was not a favorite of mine, as I am more a fan of German style off-dry to sweet rieslings than of the Aussie dry style. Does anyone in Chile make a sweet Riesling?
Next was Santa Rita Medalla Real Chardonnay. A great example of where Chilean Chards seem to be heading. Limestone soil gives it plenty of acid, and the palate has mineral notes complementing the pear flavors. This could be the New World's answer to Burgundy.
Falernia Syrah Reserve 2007 is the first wine of any type that I've had from Elqui Valley. I thought they only grew grapes for Pisco, but this proves that they can make substantial wines also. A very classic example of the textbook descriptions of Syrah; black pepper, spice, earth, smoke, and a nose that is best described as "bacon fat" (this was especially true after tasting the other wines then coming back). A powerful wine, worthy of a nice steak from the grill; a wine that doesn't waste time being elegant. Just pure powerful Syrah. Amazing for a wine of only $15.
Next we tasted De Martino's "El Leon", a blend of 90% Carignan. Yes, Carignan. With a touch of Malbec and Carmenere. Talk about a secret; I've never had a wine of 90% Carignan from anywhere. Lot's of tart cherry, a little dried fruit, and more flavors I never quite figured out. Rich but elegant; I'd love a nice filet mignon with this, but I also think that I could drink a whole bottle by itself (and by myself; not sure that I'd want to share!) At $40, this was to me one of the stars of the whole tasting.
Anka Parqua II 2007 is almost a classic Bordeaux blend, except for Malbec being replace with Syrah. The Syrah character comes through just enough to show that this is not a wine from Bordeaux, but were it not for that, you could have fooled me into believing it was a classified growth.
Emiliana Coyam 2008 is another great blend, with much more Carmenere. Grown biodynamically, a great wine from the Colcahgua Valley. I just wish that the Petit Verdot had shown through a little more, but then again, I'm a big fan of that grape.
The special tasting concluded with two vintages of Casa Real by Santa Rita, the current 2007 release, and the inaugural 1998 vintage. I have to admit, I found the 2007 rather disappointing; but the 1998 was fantastic. I just hope that the 07 simply needs some more aging to show its beauty.
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