Chilean Wines

[glass]

Hi again [img]http://205.134.252.108/ubb/smile.gif[/img]

I've been experimenting here and there since my last post and now beginning to have a clearer picture of the wine world. So far I've been trying out Chilean, Bordeaux and Australian wines (as a first stage/introductory).. Anyway, the subject is Chilean Wines because there's a Wine Festival happening in town (a buy 1 get 1 free offer) and I need suggestions from the 'gurus' (or 'seniors' lol) [img]http://205.134.252.108/ubb/smile.gif[/img].. So far my must have wine (there must be a botlle ready to open at all time) would be a Conchay Toro Frontera Cab Sauv '04.. Could someone point out some nice reds (similar or even better than the Frontera) on the following list ?.. Any comments/suggestions are most welcomed and valued.. Thx again [img]http://205.134.252.108/ubb/smile.gif[/img]

http://www.hellobalimagazine.com/pages/edition/november-2006/regulars/wine-spark/hats-off-to-chile.php

[Innkeeper]

We have never been big fans of Chilean Wines. Of those we have enjoyed, all have been Cabs or blends thereof. Here is our short list:

Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Escudo Rojo, Maipo Valley

Los Vascos, Reserve, Colchagua Valley

Montes, Reserve, Oak Aged, Colchagua Valley

[winoweenie]

2nd the 3 reliable producers pointed to by IK. They consistantly make solid well-crafted juice. WW

[wdonovan]

Believe the Rothschilds are mixed up in the Los Vascos effort. For the money, it's not bad. Latest vintage (03?) does express itself with overtones of green olive but we like it anyway for a change of pace.

[stevebody]

My best-selling Cab right now (and deservedly so) is the Marques de Casa Concha '04 from Concha y Toro, the little brother of their towering Don Melchor. The Merlot, Syrah, and Chard in this line are also excellent values, usually topping out somewhere in the mid-teens.

Our best-selling wine for the past year is a collaboration between Peter Click (enterpreneur from here in Seattle who's the driving force behind the US brand of Fat Bastard) and Ventisquero, the large Chilean wine company. It's a wonderful 85/15 blend of Cab and Syrah, made by Felipe Toso, former head winemaker at Concha y Toro, who made the Don melchor for about fifteen years. It's called Root:1 and is as agreeable a Cab-based table wine as I've found in the past eighteen months.

Chile is on quite a roll, right now. The blend called Primus, by Veramonte (Agustin Huneeus' Chilean property) recently made Wine Spectator's list of Smart Buys for the year. The Latin pop singer Luis Miguel has recently released his own Cabernet, Unico, made by the son of Aurelio Montes, owner of the Montes brand. It's a nice, ageworthy Cab. The Santa Ema wines listed in your link, are very tasty but oaked to death. If you're a vanilla/smoke/butter fan, their Chard is killer and their Merlot has been fine for years. The list goes on and on. If you haven't tasted around in Chilean wines lately, you're missing some great stuff!