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Visiting
Chile's wine regions
Part 5:
Casas del Bosque, Chile
Next
visit was Casas del Bosque, a large family owned winery in
Casablanca that was established in 1993 by
Juan Cuneo Solari, an Italian immigrant's son. The property
is huge – 1000 hectares in all, with 245 hectares of vines.
We
visited the vineyards and cellars with winemaker Felipe Garcia (above),
and tasted through an interesting series of wine. Felipe had
prepared an interesting comparative tasting looking at the effects
of different clones of Syrah.
Chardonnay
and Sauvignon Blanc are the white wines grown here, with Merlot,
Carmenère, Syrah and Pinot Noir making up the reds. In addition,
there are 13 hectares of red varieties in Rapel. Production totals
60 000 cases a year, and next year they expect to crush 1000 tons
(60% white grapes).
Sauvignon
Blanc Gran Reserva 2007 (tank sample)
This used to be
made entirely of clone 1 (gives structure and weight), but now is
50% clone 1, 30% clone 242 (tropical notes) and 20% clone 107
(higher acidity). Crisp, grassy aromatics. Palate is rounded and
tasty with good acidity and balance. 88/100
Chardonnay
Reserve 2007
From clayey
soils, which Felipe reckons means concentration for whites. 65%
barrel fermented. Bold, rich, intense style with some rich, almost
sweet nutty notes. Broad and rich textured. 87/100
 Pinot
Noir Gran Reserva 2007
Very bright
with fresh, pure cherry fruit and a spicy, slightly tarry edge.
Bright with some grippy tannins. Attractive. 89/100
Pinot
Noir (special bottling) 2007
Just 800
bottles of this made. ‘Pinot is my biggest target in the
future’, says Felipe. This has a lovely dark cherry and spice
nose. The palate is complex, dense and spicy with nice freshness.
Quite elegant with good structure. 91/100
Cabernet
Sauvignon Gran Reserva 2007 Rapel
Pure
blackcurrant fruit nose with some elegance. The palate shows smooth,
rich black fruits with accessible, tasty fruit. 88/100
Then
it was time for an experiment. Four barrel samples of Syrah from
different clones. Felipe points out that Chile makes two different
types of Syrah – big and alcoholic, and cool climate. His
preference is, clearly, for the cool climate style.
Syrah
2007 massale selection
Very dark and
intense. Almost floral peppery nose is very rich. The palate is
vivid, bold and intense with ripeness and freshness combining well.
92–94/100
Syrah
2007 Clone 300
Amazing dark
colour. Vivid, concentrated nose is fresh, spicy and almost peppery.
The palate is bold and intense with fantastic concentration and
structure. 92–94/100
Syrah
2007 Clone 99
Really perfumed
dark spicy nose. Vibrant with excellent definition. The palate has
chocolatey richness with some oak evident. Rich and a bit tarry.
91–93/100
Syrah
2007 Clone 174
Rich, alluring
spicy chocolatey nose. Quite perfumed and showing some oak. The
palate is really structured with concentrated, bold fruit and sweet,
roasted oak notes. Very forward. 89–92/100
A
blend of the four together:
Dark, intense
and vivid with some chocolatey, spicy richness and firm tannins. A
massive dark wine combining vivid fruit with richness and spiciness.
Really tannic. Impressive. 91–94/100
Estate
Selection 2006 (barrel sample)
A blend of
Syrah, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Carmenère. Highly aromatic, perfumed
nose of red and black fruit. The palate is quite elegant with spicy
plummy, cherry and berry fruit. Lots of tannin. Very refined but
highly structured and quite oaky. This should age really well.
90–93/100
Grande
Bosque Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 (barrel sample)
Quite elegant
red fruits with vivid fresh fruit and firm tannins. There’s
massive structure here and good acidity. One for the future –
potentially really impressive in an elegant style. 90–92/100
VISITING
CHILE'S WINE REGIONS
Wines
tasted 01/08
Find these wines with wine-searcher.com
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