Argentine and Chilean Wines assessed: current releases and other thoughts
620 Jones, San Francisco, California
Tasted Wednesday, June 22, 2011 by rjonwine@gmail.com with 1,318 views
Introduction
This was a public tasting of wines from Argentina and Chile organized by Uncorked Events. Representatives of 15 or so importers, producers and distributors of wines from these countries were pouring, including Aresti, Bock Wines (La Yunta, Durigutti), Cabernet Corporation Wine Merchants (Don Rodolfo, Belasco de Banguedano), Casa Lapostolle, Dos Andes Wines (Llai Llai and Ruta 22), Henry Wine Group (De Martino, Clos de Los Siete, Diamandes), Hess Family Estates (Colome, Amalaya), Land of Malbec (Altos Las Hormigas, Ksana, Manos Negros), Oasis Wines (maker of Revolution Malbec), Palm Bay International (Salentein, MontGras), Pasternak Wine Imports (Los Vascos, Rutini), Titan Wine & Spirits (Norton, Montes, Santa Ema), Vine Connections (Crios, Mapema, Susana Balbao), Vineyard Brands (Cono Sur), Vintus (Errazuriz, Bodega Lurton), and Weinert. In my continuing efforts to keep abreast of the burgeoning world of wine, this looked like a worthy forum for catching up on the current state of wines in our Southern Hemisphere. Indeed it was, for the most part, but it also turned out to be a very overcast and chilly summer evening in San Francisco for an outdoor event. The large, youngish crowd made the most of it, and a bonfire at one end of the 620 Jones patio attracted a number of participants by the end of the tasting. A lot of entry level wines were poured, but there was also a pretty good smattering of the premium and top bottlings. I took notes on 72 wines at this tasting, which was most of what they were pouring except for a few wines that were corked (and they didn't have back up bottles). Forty of those were Argentine, 31 were from Chile and 1 was from Uruguay (a Tannat, of course).
I must state upfront that I have yet to become a real fan of wines of Argentina and Chile. I lived in Argentina for several months in the mid-'80s and visited Mendoza and other wine growing regions of Argentina and Chile when the modern wine industry there was in its relative infancy. In those years, Chilean wines were widely acknowledged as of better quality than those of Argentina, and the top producer that was easily available was Concha y Toro. Things have changed dramatically since those visits 25 years ago, of course, and Argentina is now the fifth largest producer of wine in the world. I know that big, fruity, hearty Chilean and Argentine reds have their place alongside the parillada and expertly grilled red meats that make up such a significant part of the southern South American diet. They have their place in American culture too, and the relatively inexpensive Argentine Malbecs and Chilean red blends--at $8 to $16 a bottle--have a big following here among those looking for a big, fruity red to go with simple barbecues and the like. What wines from this region typically lack, however, is refinement and finesse. For this reason, they are virtually never my go to wines on any occasion when I'm drinking for pleasure. The one exception to that statement is the white wine that I think is the region's biggest success story to date--Torrontés.
Argentina
As mentioned above, Argentina scores well with one distinctive white variety--Torrontés. There are terrific versions of this aromatic, floral, often peachy varietal available from $9 to $20. My benchmark for Torrontés is the Crios de Susana Balbo, which runs about $16, as it is pretty ubiquitous in California and very reliably good. I've also had a few good Chardonnays from Argentina, the best of which, to date, was the 2004 Viña Cobos Chardonnay Bramare Marchiori Vineyard. The Sauvignon Blancs I've had from Argentina to date have been undistinguished.
My favorite Argentine red wines from the relatively thin slice of the market that represents fine wine have been the atypically refined (and expensive) single vineyard Malbecs from Achával-Ferrer. A couple of these--in particular, the Finca Altamira--I've rated 93 and 94 points in particular vintages. I've also had a very good Cabernet/Malbec blend from Pascual Toso (I rated the 2006 93 points), and excellent single vineyard Malbecs from Bodega Catena and Viña Cobos, as well as very good blended Malbecs from Doña Paula, Kaiken and Terrazas de Los Andes. So Malbec, Argentina's most widely planted red variety, does seem to have a promising future, although there's also an ocean of mediocre, dull versions. Bordeaux blends also seem promising. The best of those that I've tried to date are the Achával-Ferrer Quimera (multiple vintages); the seriously pricey--$110 or so, since the Wine Advocate's Jay Miller gave it 97 points--2006 Bodega Catena Zapata Nicolás Catena Zapata (RJ92+ points) and Cheval Blanc's Argentine venture, the 2005 Terrazas de Los Andes Cheval des Andes (92 points). I have yet to taste a single varietal Cabernet Sauvignon from Argentina that I've rated more than 89 points.
A great deal of Syrah has been planted in Argentina in recent years, and the best one of those I've tasted, and rated 92+ points, was the 2006 Luca Laborde Double Select. (We had the '09 version in this tasting, and it was nowhere near as good as the '06.) Otherwise, I've been quite disappointed with Argentine Syrahs, which are rarely anywhere near as tasty and interesting as the dozens of good and complex Syrahs one can find from California, Washington State, Australia or, of course, France. Bonarda, which is probably the same as Charbono, is the second most widely planted red grape in Argentina after Malbec. My highest rated single varietal Bonardas have been the 2000 Tikal Corazón (89+ points), and a couple that I've rated 89: 2007 Argie Andes and 2008 Argento.
Chile
Chile now produces about half as much wine as Argentina. Chile's vineyards are famous for being free of phylloxera, due to Chile's geographic isolation--bounded by the Andes on the east, the Pacific on the west, and the vast desert of the north. As a result, some wonderful old vine vineyards can be found, with vines on their own rootstocks. Cabernet Sauvignon is the most widely planted varietal in Chile. My favorite Chilean wine to date (at least since I started keeping track of my tasting notes in 2003), at 93 points, was a 2004 Montes Syrah Folly La Finca de Apalta. I've also had one remarkably good Pinot Noir from Chile--2002 Matetic Pinot Noir EQ (92 points)--and a very good Bordeaux blend, 2005 Viña Almaviva S.A. Almaviva (92+ points). I've mainly had good Cabernets and Bordeaux blends from Chile, the most reliable producer of which has been Casa Lapostolle--both the Clos Apalta blend and the Cabernet Sauvignon Cuvée Alexandre Apalta Vineyard. On the white side, I've had quite decent Chardonnays and Sauvignon Blancs from Chile. The best of the latter was the 2008 Luis Felipe Edwards Sauvignon Blanc Family Selection. I'll mention my top Chardonnay to date in the list of my top wines from this tasting below.
Carménère has become Chile's answer to Argentina's Malbec as its distinctive and widely planted Bordeaux heritage varietal. The fact this traditional Bordeaux grape, now virtually gone from Bordeaux, was widely present in Chile was only discovered in 1994. Previously, these Carménère plantings were thought to be Merlot, or a local clone of Merlot. The best varietal bottling I've had of this grape to date was the 2007 TerraNoble Carménère Reserva (90 points). Based on over 15 single varietal bottlings of Carménère I've tried so far, including a few in this tasting, I believe it is better employed in blends with Cabernet and other red varieties than on its own. It simply lacks the complexity and depth of flavor to make a very interesting varietal on its own.
My top wines of this tasting, that I rated 90 points or higher, were:
Whites
2010 Crios de Susana Balbo Torrontés - 91 points
2008 Casa Lapostolle Chardonnay Cuvée Alexandre - 90 points
Reds
2008 Clos de los Siete - 91 points
2005 Durigutti Malbec Familia - 91+ points
2007 Casa Lapostolle Clos Apalta - 91 points
2007 Santa Ema Catalina - 90+ points
As a guide to those who are looking for those $8 to $16 Argentine or Chilean big reds, here are the best I found at this event, at 88 points or higher:
Best Bargain Reds
2009 Durigutti Malbec - 89 points (around $13)
2009 Errazuriz Cabernet Sauvignon Single Vineyard - 89 points ($16)
2009 Casa Lapostolle Carménère Casa - 88+ points ($12)
2007 Manos Negras Malbec - 88 points ($14)
2006 Viña Cono Sur Carménère Visión - 89 points ($12)
Also, even though I didn't rate any of their wines 90 points or higher, I was impressed with the lineup from Errazuriz across the board, as I was with Casa Lapostolle's offerings generally. Particularly disappointing, for me, were a couple of the labels with significant French owners or partners: Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) and Bodega Lurton.
For the detailed tasting notes, see below.
Flight 1 - Altos Las Hormigas (1 Note)
Flight 2 - Aresti (2 Notes)
Flight 3 - Barons de Rothschild (2 Notes)
Flight 4 - Belasco de Baquedano (2 Notes)
Flight 5 - Bouza (1 Note)
Flight 6 - Camino Del Inca (1 Note)
Flight 7 - Carlos Basso (1 Note)
Flight 8 - Clos de los Siete (1 Note)
Flight 9 - Colome (3 Notes)
Flight 10 - Crios de Susana Balbo (1 Note)
Flight 11 - Decero (2 Notes)
Flight 12 - De Martino (3 Notes)
Flight 13 - Diamandes (1 Note)
Flight 14 - Dominio del Plata (1 Note)
Flight 15 - Don Martino (1 Note)
Flight 16 - Durigutti (2 Notes)
Flight 17 - Errazuriz (4 Notes)
Flight 18 - LaMadrid (1 Note)
Flight 19 - La Playa (2 Notes)
Flight 20 - La Yunta (1 Note)
Flight 21 - Lapostolle (5 Notes)
Flight 22 - Llai Llai (2 Notes)
Flight 23 - Lo Tengo (1 Note)
Flight 24 - Luca (1 Note)
Flight 25 - Lurton (2 Notes)
Flight 26 - Manos Negras (1 Note)
Flight 27 - Mapema (1 Note)
Flight 28 - Montes (1 Note)
Flight 29 - MontGras (2 Notes)
Flight 30 - Norton (1 Note)
Flight 31 - Oasis (1 Note)
Flight 32 - Ruta 22 (1 Note)
Flight 33 - Rutini (4 Notes)
Flight 34 - Salentein (2 Notes)
Flight 35 - Santa Ema (1 Note)
Flight 36 - Tikal (1 Note)
Flight 37 - Viña Alicia (1 Note)
Flight 38 - Viña Cono Sur (6 Notes)
2010 Altos Las Hormigas Malbec Clásico 87 Points
Argentina, Mendoza
Baked black fruit, char nose; baked black fruit, char, chocolate palate; medium finish 87+ points
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