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An eclectic list of Chilean wines from Pinot Noir to César
Following our selection of Cabernets and Carmenères from Chile, along with Syrahs, Malbecs and Merlots, we bring you an eclectic list of the country’s other vinous high points, from Pinot Noir to the forgotten grape of César.
The wines featured below were taken from a tasting featuring samples from 28 leading producers in Chile. Wines of Chile asked them to submit no more than two wines for assessing. The wineries put forward commercially available samples that they were most proud of, representing new and exciting bottles, along with the latest vintages of established labels. All the samples were judged blind in August 2022, with the full results of the tasting featuring in the September edition of the drinks business. Featured below are the Pinot Noirs from the tasting, along with some more esoteric wines, made from grapes such as Cinsault, País, Carignan and César.
VIA WINES, CHILENSIS SIGNATURE SERIES PINOT NOIR, 2017
Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
Region: Casablanca
ABV: 14%
RRP: £50
Score: 93
This soft, fleshy Casablanca Pinot Noir from Chilensis is an instantly appealing expression of this popular grape. There’s a summer puddling-like character to it, with its mass of ripe red berry fruit, as well as a slight sweetness, (although there’s only 4g/l of residual sugar), then a background hint of creamy vanilla. Adding interest to the wine are some subtle aged notes – this is from the 2017 vintage – such as dried grass and a touch of stewed rhubarb. Complementing this are fresher notes of orange and cranberry, and some fine-grained tannin to give a dryness to the finish. In short, it’s a complex, balanced and fleshy Pinot that just starting to show some appealing tertiary characters, and, while pricy, this layered, indulgent red offers a chance to sample slightly aged Chilean Pinot without having to wait.
GARCES SILVA, BOYA PINOT NOIR, 2019
Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
Region: Leyda Valley
ABV: 13.5%,
RRP: £12.50,
Score: 92.
After the Amaya Sauvignon Blanc from Leyda, which I rated highly, this is another impressive wine from Garces Silva. Hailing from the same valley as the Sauvignon, this Pinot Noir shows why Ledya is becoming the go-to for fine Pinot in Chile. While initially a touch reductive – there was a whiff of cooked egg when first opened – this character cleared quickly, allowing me to enjoy the flavours of crushed strawberry, red cherry, and hint of tomato stem that mingle in this appealing, medium-weight and good-value Pinot. Complementing the fruit and a touch of toast is a palate-cleansing chalky-textured tannin component.
UNDURRAGA, T.H. PINOT NOIR, 2020
Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
Region: San Antonio Valley
ABV: 13.5%,
RRP: £19
Score: 91.
This ambitious and refreshing Pinot – bottled as part of Undurraga’s reliably good Terroir Hunter series – shows the restrained, more herbal side of the reds from San Antonio/Leyda. While there’s plenty of red cherry and crushed strawberry characters, even a hint of pink bubblegum, there’s also a touch of stemminess to this wine, along with notes of bay and tomato leaf. Layered, gently fruity and bright, this is a fairly light Pinot, although it finishes with quite firm dry tannins that seem a touch at odds with the mid-weight fruit concentration in this wine.
CONO SUR, 20 BARRELS PINOT NOIR, 2020
Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
Region: San Antonio Valley
ABV: 14.5%,
RRP: £15
Score: 94
I was pleased to find out that longstanding Pinot Noir specialist Cono Sur was the producer of my favourite Pinot of this year ’s tasting, because this winery has invested so much into perfecting the output from this pernickety grape, and particularly for creating fine results at keen prices. Indeed, this was the best-value red in the line-up this year – whatever the variety – scoring 94 points, yet costing just £15. For that sum, you get a powerfully-flavoured, fully-ripe, but beautifully balanced example of Pinot, with pure, intense red and black cherry at its core, followed by juicy raspberry, toast and tobacco leaf, and a bright redcurrant and sour cherry edge, with some firm, but fine tannin. What impressed me was the combination of fleshy berry fruit and the fresh mouth-watering finish, while there is an absence of green stemmy flavours that can beset cheaper Pinots. There’s also a sense that this affordable red has the structure to age and develop greater complexity over the next two to three years in the bottle – the aim for a fine Pinot that’s usually sold at a much higher price.
LFE, CINSO, 2021
Varieties: 100% Cinsault
Region: Itata Valley
ABV: 13%
RRP: £19
Score: 89
This new release from LFE comprises Cinsault from 30-year-old ungrafted vines in Chile’s increasingly fashionable Itata Valley. Made without any oak-influence, it’s a fresh, fruity style of red, which showcases the character of Itata Cinsault with great clarity. There’s plenty of ripe orange and red cherry fruit, with a touch of cranberry and dried herbs in what is a pleasingly light, fresh red, with fine, chalky tannins, and a zesty edge.
SUTIL, LIMITED RELEASE CINSAULT, 2021
Varieties: Cinsault
Region: Itata
ABV: 13%
RRP: Approx £18
Score: 91
Using Cinsault from dry farmed, bush-vines in Chile’s historic Itata wine region, this ‘limited release’ from Sutil is quite delicate in colour and body, with notes of raspberry and cranberry, making it a little like Pinot Noir. But then there are other characters too, from plums to red apple, and a hint of strawberry bubblegum, along with some fine, firm tannic grip to give a dry, mouthwatering edge to the finish. In short, this is quite a lightweight wine, but an impressive example of pure Chilean Cinsault.
MONTGRAS HANDCRAFTED CARIGNAN, 2020
Varieties: 100% Carignan
Region: Maule
ABV: 13%
RRP: £19
Score: 88
Along with fine Cabernet, Carmenère and Syrah, Chile is proving an increasingly good source of Carignan, particularly when harnessed from old vines in the south of the country. Among these is this example from MontGras under its Handcrafted range of wines, which is made with Carignan from 64-year-old dry-farmed bush vines in Maule. It’s a distinctive drop, featuring Carignan’s surprising mix of sweet fruit and fresh acidity, with notes of balsamic, and ripe red berries, then mouth-watering sour cherry finish, with a touch of dried herbs.
MORANDÉ, TERROIR WINES CINSAULT-PAÍS, 2020
Varieties: 55% Cinsault, 45% País
Region: Maule Valley
ABV: 14%
RRP: Approx £13
Score: 93
This delicious, perfumed, balanced and pretty red from Morandé is an exciting newcomer to the more esoteric side of Chilean wine, using 60-year-old dry-farmed bush vines from Maule. There’s an appealing medium-weight feel to the wine, with fleshy red berry fruit, some plums and sour cherry too, and a touch of creamy vanilla and cedar wood too. Following the ripe red fruit is a bright acidity and some dry tannin to make you salivate. A really good example of Chile’s viticultural history.
CARMEN D.O. MATORRAL CHILENO 2021
Varieties: 60% Grenache, 30% Carignan, 10% País
Region: Maule Valley
ABV: 13.3%
RRP: Approx £30
Score: 92
The unusual combination of grapes in Carmen’s Matorral Chileno can be explained by the dry-farmed vineyard used to make this distinctive and delicious wine from the Melozal area in the Maule Valley. Although planted with País over 100 years ago, some of the variety’s ungrafted roots were grafted with Carignan in the 1930s, with a further quantity of País plants then grafted with Grenache a decade ago. The result is a wine with masses of juicy crushed strawberry, backed up by a touch of crunchy cranberry and chalky tannin to bring a dry finish. It’s a really appealing, fruity red with lots of personality and a firm structure.
TORRES LOS INQUIETOS 1, 2019
Varieties: Field blend, dominated by Malbec
Region: Maule Valley
ABV: 14%
RRP: Approx £30
Score: 90
Inspired by a restless search for something different, the Los Inquietos label from Torres was born, starting with this first release, comprising a ‘field blend’ of grapes planted in 1945 in the Maule Valley. Dominated by Malbec, the mixed planted also features Cabernet Sauvignon and Carmenère, along with “an unknown variety”, which adds yet more intrigue to the wine. The result is a red with layers of flavour from fleshy ripe cherry and strawberry to blackberry, along with a touch of dried mint and peppery spice, and, finally, a firm, chewy tannic finish.
CASA SILVA 1912 VINES, ROMANO, 2021
Varieties: 100% César Noir
Region: Colchagua
ABV: 14%
RRP: £16
Score: 90
Proof that the Chilean wine scene is full of surprises is this wine from Casa Silva. Made from an almost extinct red grape called Romano in Chile, it was discovered growing in Colchagua almost 10 years ago, although the variety originates from around Chablis in the Yonne department of France, where it’s called César, and is occasionally used as a blending partner with Pinot Noir in Irancy. As for this remarkable wine from Casa Silva, the Romano comes from vines planted in 1912, and yields an interesting drop that tastes as though it has a touch of the red berry fruit of Pinot Noir, along with some of the aromatics of Carmenère and the tannins of Malbec. So, there’s plenty of cherry and cranberry fruit, along with some green capsicum and white pepper, followed by notes of coffee bean and cedar, and then a dry, mouth-coating tannic finish. A distinctive and structured red that’s rescuing a forgotten variety.