I t’s #winechat time. We have three Chilean reds that they sent us for review. We are eager to jump in. We have a few select friends. We are starting with about 4 people.
Here are the wines to be presented (click to see more):
Here are the detailed wine notes:
Los Vascos Grande Reserve 2011 | Colchagua Valley, Chile
Nice wine to start with. Aromas….. smells like wine… was the first remark. Second, smells like “grapes.” Black cherries, redcurrants. The nose is a bit more floral. The tastes this crowd describe include black cherry, blackberry and currants. Nice structure. We think this will cellar well. The finish to me is a bit drier than the start. Could spend a bit more time in the bottle. (we opened the bottles a hour earlier and decanted about a half an hour later). This wine is around $20. Bright ruby red colour. The nose opens with fresh fruit such as plums and cherries which blend with notes of vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, toasted hazelnut flour, white pepper, cloves and cashew nuts. The palate is well-balanced with good structure and volume and a very pleasant lingering finish.
We are following the Tweets and someone said they tasted “forest floor funk and herb patch with pink peppercorns”. Since we haven’t had any forest funk before we can’t relate.
The final vote on this from the crowd… now grown to 7…. is 2 “ehs” and 5 thumbs up.
Grapes: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Carmenère,
10% Syrah, 5% Malbec.
Montes Twins Malbec | Colchagua Valley, Chile
Frank says “dirty plums.” Dennis is saying “oooohh.” You can smell the alcohol on the aroma. Crab apples. Much quicker finish. Doesn’t linger. “Just washes away” said Lowell. Dennis and Dan think it’s better than the first. A bit smoother but agree the finish is kinda sudden. This is a $15 price.
. Their tasting notes says Meet the Twins: A masterstroke of varietal blendng from Chile’s winemaking legend, Aurelio Montes. Their website says Beautiful lively ruby red color. Young and great power in this wine. The perfect harmony between the aromas of red fruits from Cabernet Sauvignon and the hint of plums from Malbec makes this wine very elegant and attractive. Sweet, fresh and firm tannins from Cabernet Sauvignon combine very nicely with the velvety and smooth body from Malbec. A seductive lingering in the mouth.
This crew votes. The vote is reversed. 5 “ehs” and 2 ayes. The belief is that might have cellared a bit longer. One Tweet said many Chilean reds taste better the next day. Dan and Dennis both add that this wine is excellent with nice spicy marinated steak which we are enjoying.
Grapes: 50% Malbec, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon
Santa Rita Triple C 2007 | Maipo Valley, Chile
“Nice leggy wine.” Much fuller body. Very smooth. We are reading Tweet saying this tastes like shampoo et al… but we like it. Got some nice oak. The Carménère adds a nice touch. First taste is much more lush. Second taste is a bit more dry. Dennis says it’s fantastic. Lowell thinks it has a velvet finish but Dennis adds “with an iron fist.” This is good…. and getting better as we let it air out. If this tastes like shampoo then I think someone needs to keep their mouth closed when taking a shower. The average price of this wine $32.
This superb wine is a blend of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Carménère, three Bordeaux grape varieties that have been carefully grown by Santa Rita for more than 80 years. This wine benefits from the best of both; Old and New World combining the elegance of traditional grape varieties with New World techniques.
Wrap Up: The challenge with these kind of tastings it that you try and compare the wines against each other. In the end someone wins and someone loses. The reality is that each of these wines would have been enjoyed at a party or a dinner. Sure, the last wine really stood out but then again its been aging for almost 7 years. We had fun, we had some nice wines. Dan was proud to have the last glass of the Triple C.
