WeeklyWinePick.com » Chile

Akel Kine: Chile’s First Cult Wine?

Derek Swanson — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 19:08:04 +0000

Last week I had lunch with Santiago Margozzini, winemaker at Chile’s MontGras winery. I remain convinced there is no better way to gain insights into the contents of a bottle than to talk with the person behind it. Santiago is Italian by birth, and he considers his father his “gold” consumer and his most reliable critic. ”My father drinks wine daily at lunch and dinner. If Dad gives one of my bottles away to a friend, I know I didn’t get it right.” A great way to evaluate quality in my opinion.

The highlight of Santiago’s portfolio is a non-vintage still red called Akel Kine. This wine is currently aging in the bottles before release, and we finished our lunch with a preview of it. Akel Kine is 90% Carmenere and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, that ages for 16 months in French oak. Santiago has reserved proportionate blends from the best vintages of the past 10 years to include in the inaugural release. This wine was thick, with a long, long finish. Tea and sage grabbed my nose before dense berry, slate and leather grabbed my taste buds. The last words I said to Santiago before I left the restaurant were, “I’ll take a case of that, regardless of how much it costs.” He laughed me off, but I was dead serious.

Santiago currently has no plans to sell Akel Kine. ”This is a showcase product. At MontGras we are focused on producing high-quality wines at very approachable prices. We made Akel Kine to show that the same fruit used to make our value wines can be used to make a luxury wine,” he said.

Santiago poured five wines from the MontGras line to pair with lunch at the Sou’ Westerner restaurant in DC’s Mandarin Oriental. We started with his Sauvignon Blanc from Chile’s San Antonio Valley. The vineyards are 10 kilometers from the pacific, meaning lower temps but lots of sunshine for the grapes. The wine had a nice balance of acid and sugar, with meyer lemon on the nose and the palate. The Reserva Camenère from Colchagua Valley was well made, with a balance of firmness and softness. ”Camenère needs heat, and lots of it to achieve optimum ripeness,” said Santiago. The Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon was supple and ripe, with strong blackberry flavor and minty overtones. Santiago’s signature blend, Quatro, was well-rounded, fresh and modern. A mix of Cab, Camenère, Syrah and Malbec reflect the tutelage Santiago spent under Paul Hobbs, learning the importance of grape ripeness in avoiding green flavors.

Chicken Tarragon with Unoaked Chardonnay

Dick Rosano — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 00:08:32 +0000

Chicken can take on so many personalities, depending on the preparation and what’s on the plate next to it. Roasted chicken is not like blackened chicken, and neither are like dishes served with cream sauce, marinara, or an artichoke lemon preparation.

It’s no wonder we often hear “it tastes like chicken” when someone wants to make light of the blank palette this bird is.

And what of chicken tarragon? This is a marriage made in heaven, because the tarragon breathes life into the bird while the juice of the chicken brings out the aromas of the tarragon. A perfect dinner pair is tarragon chicken and a mushroom risotto. The blend of textures and broad range of aromas from the four principle parts – chicken, tarragon, butter-sautéed rice and mushroom – offer a not-to-miss dining opportunity. [Hint for the cook: Find a tarragon chicken recipe that is oven-baked, freeing the hands for the labor-intensive stove-top preparation of the risotto.]

Some of the recipes mentioned above would be paired with Arneis (roasted chicken), Syrah (blackened chicken), oaky Chardonnay (cream sauce), or Pinot Grigio (artichoke lemon sauce). But tarragon chicken, and its herbal aromas, requires something with a bit more “oomph” than Pinot Grigio but lighter than an oaked Chardonnay.

For this, Emiliana Natura 2010 Chardonnay (Valle de Casablanca, Chile, $11) steps into the breach. Fresh citrusy aromas and light, unoaked palate impression ensure a wine that is medium-bodied yet minerally enough to pair with the tarragon flavors of this dish. The Emiliana vineyards are farmed organically, which should also make the wine more palatable to buyers. The tiny amount of Sauvignon Blanc (about 1%) that is blended in before bottling probably accounts for the tangy accent.

2005 Veramonte Primus Red Wine, Casablanca Valley, Chile

Angela Logomasini — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 22:06:12 +0000

Vinography blogger Alder Yarrow suggests that readers of the Weekly Wine Pick try the 2005 Veramonte Primus Red Wine from the Casablanca Valley in Chile. Yarrow says he chooses this wine “because it’s a fabulous value and a really tasty red that will go with the heartier dishes of winter, including, of course, any red meat you might want to serve with it. The wine is also a great introduction to a region that American wine lovers should pay more attention to.” Primus is a Bordeaux-style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Carmenère that is aged it in both French and American oak for 12-18 months. Carmenère died out in Bordeaux during the outbreak of phylloxera, an insect that wreaked havoc on European vines during the 1860s. Fortunately the grape had been imported to Chile, where it now flourishes and is one of Chile’s signature grapes. According to the winery website, Carmenère adds “an exotic spice and a rich, sensuous texture to blends.” Yarrow offers more details in a blog post on the topic.

Yarrow started his Vinography blog in 2003, before there were any wine bloggers to be found. In addition to being a pioneer, Adler provides first-rate reviews that have garnered much attention and have generated speaking engagements around the world for Yarrow. He also serves as a member of Sommelier Journal editorial board. FIND IT!

Casa Lapostolle Cuvee Alexandre, 2006 Apalta Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

Derek Swanson — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:00:54 +0000

Michael Pappas, wine director at Salem’s hottest new restaurant, 62 on Wharf, believes Lapostolle’s wines offer tremendous value to his guests. This Chilean cabernet is rounded off with a 15% blend of merlot. The 2006 growing season in the Apalta vineyard was ideal, allowing a harvest of perfectly mature fruit. Year after year, the soil, climate and topography of Apalta vineyard combine to provide fruit that Lapostolle’s winemakers turn into wines of outstanding quality. This cabernet can be enjoyed today, or cellared and appreciated many years from now.

FIND IT!