Red Wine Villard Grand Vin Pinot Noir 2018. No need to decant. Founded by Thierry Villard in 1989, Villard Fine Wines is a premium family winery from Chile regarded as one of the best producers in the Casablanca Valley. Thanks to the exceptional terroir and the unique characteristics of the Valley, the new generation has introduced innovative winemaking techniques to create new super-premium wines of excellent structure and elegance. The 100% Pinot Noir grapes are planted on clay loam soil in the Casablanca Valley. The harvest is manual, and the grapes undergo cold maceration for 7 days, before the alcoholic and malolactic fermentations. The resulting wine is aged in French oak barrels for 10 months. Production is limited to less than 6000 bottles. In the glass, the wine shows a wonderful bright strawberry red color. The olfactory profile is rich and intense with aromas of fresh berries, strawberries, chocolate, and soft notes of French Oak. On the palate, there is a good complexity between fruit and wood with notes of moisture and leather. This Pinot Noir has a good structure and an elegant character, with a pleasant and long finish. Try it with baked sea bass, white meat, vegetarian pasta dishes, and medium-aged cheese.
2018
Red Wine Villard Grand Vin Pinot Noir 2018
Red Wine Villard Tanagra Syrah 2018. Villard is named after Thierry Villard, a Parisian who settled in Chile in the 1980s and established his own winery in Casablanca. Today the estate is run by his son, Charlie, who has focused his attention on minimal intervention winemaking and allowing the beauty of the local terroir to shine through. Conditions here are ideal for premium winemaking thanks to the nearby Pacific Ocean and coastal mountains which help cool down temperatures during the summer. The fruit used for this punchy Syrah is grown on granitic soils in a vineyard planted in 2010. All of the grapes are harvested by hand and the winery uses sustainable agricultural practices wherever possible. Once in the winery the grapes are crushed and then transferred to barrels for the fermentation process followed by 20 months of ageing in new and used oak. Enticing hints of luscious ripe berries, plums, and cherries immediately burst out of the glass followed by undertones of spice, sweet tobacco and polished leather. On the palate there’s a generous full body, robust tannins and a well-developed structure that will help this wine age beautifully in the cellar. If you’d rather enjoy it now, try pairing with hearty red meat dishes like venison, beef stews, or tomato-based pasta dishes.
2018
Red Wine Vina von Siebenthal Gran Reserva Carmenere 2018. Swiss lawyer Mauro von Siebenthal fell in love with the Aconcagua Valley in Chile on a trip to the country in the 1990s, and in 2009 he moved permanently to the country to pursue his dream of making wine full-time. He purchased an elegant colonial era country house which is today the headquarters of the winery as well as the surrounding land which he planted with Bordeaux varietals. This easy-going Carmenere is made with Chile’s flagship grape which has now been completely forgotten in its native Bordeaux. The grapes for this Gran Reserva come from estate vineyards on the Orocoipo hill where the granitic soils and long summer days offer excellent growing conditions for the variety. The Carmenere is blended with a small amount of Cabernet in the winery and then aged in oak barrels for 12 months before bottling. Luscious red cherry, plums and wild berry notes define the nose while the first sip reveals a medium body, smooth tannins and a soft, well-rounded texture. The finish is long and seasoned with hints of spice, toasted oak and woodsmoke from the oak ageing. Pair with charcuterie, mature cheeses, tomato-based pasta dishes or earthy game like venison and partridge.
2018