Celebrated wine educator and author of the Windows on the World Complete Wine Course, Kevin Zraly made special mention in a recent interview that some of the best wine values in the world were from South America. He singled out Malbec from Argentina and Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile. I had the opportunity to verify this claim first-hand on a recent visit to the vineyards of Chile. Yours truly was a guest of Prochile, the economic development organisation in the Chilean ministry of foreign affairs. Being part of a tour group in which I was the only English-speaking person was not cool, however, tasting the fantastic wines of Chile for five days was glorious.

Learn Spanish

Jamaica is the third-largest English-speaking country in the Americas; however, the most popular language in the region is Spanish. Thursday Life readers, if you want to give your child an advantage in life do beg them, no, force them to learn to speak Spanish.

Chile — the ‘island’

Many people refer to Chile as an island country because of its interesting location. What with the Atacama desert — the driest desert in the world — to the north, the Patagonian Glaciers — Chile’s part of the Antarctica to the South — the vast Pacific Ocean to the west and the majestic snow-capped peaks of the Andes to the east, this sliver of a country 2600 miles long and just over 200 miles wide is seen as a winemaker’s paradise with its disease-free vineyards and diverse terroir. Our travels on day one saw us trekking from the capital city of Santiago to the primary shipping port in the city of Valparaiso. This city was declared a world heritage site because of its improvised urban design and unique architecture. In 1996, the World Monuments Fund declared Valparaíso’s unusual system of funicular elevators (highly inclined cable cars) one of the world’s 100 most endangered historical treasures.

Great Wineries

The first winery I visited was Viña Errazuriz in the Aconcagua Valley. Errazuriz is steeped in history; established in 1870, it is one of the oldest wineries in Chile. An upgrade project to modernise and improve its wine-producing capabilities is underway and this should be complete early this year. It is already a ‘must-see’ on any wine trip to Chile, so you can perhaps imagine April 2010 when the new section is complete! We had the opportunity to visit or taste wines from a number of other excellent wineries such as Viña San Pedro — where wines like Gata Negro, 35 South and Castillo de Molina hails; Viña La Rosa, Viña Gillmore, Viña Anakena, VC Family Estates and the mighty Concha y Toro. Established in 1883, it is Chile’s largest and one of its best wineries. Its owns a number of other wineries in South America as part of its portfolio.

Most Breathtaking

As we rounded the corner into the Apalta region of the Colchagua Valley, I was awestruck by the sheer beauty of the place; the gentle slopes with the vines were in precision alignment. This was the home of Casa Lapostolle and Viña Montes. At Montes we tasted a wide range of their wines, including their three icons — the Ultra Premium Montes Alpha M and Montes Folly, in addition to the recently launched Purple Angel. The wines were fantastic and the winery was very scenic and relaxing — in adherence it seems to the ancient Asian philosophy of Feng Shui which seeks to optimise harmony and positive energy in the building.

A Surprise — Great Pinot Noir

It might have been day four of the five-day trip; after several hours on the road, tasting scores of wine, we were tired when we pulled into Casa Porta. While it was on our itinerary, little did I know that Casa Porta was an exclusive boutique wine experience hotel owned by VC Family Estates. It is the restored summer home of Mateo de Toro y Zambrano (president of the first governmental council in 1810) and it was turned into the first boutique hotel in the Cachapoal Valley. With its six modern guest rooms, the hotel is an inviting place to experience wine. That night I experienced one of the best Pinot Noirs I’ve tasted in a long while. Further inquiry revealed more about the fantastic Veranda Oda Pinot Noir. I soon had my ‘aha’ moment when I found out that Veranda Winery began with an alliance between VC Family Estates and the Boisset family from Burgundy, France, renowned worldwide producers of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

Carmenere

No discussion about Chile is complete without mentioning Carmenere. While Cabernet Sauvignon is currently king of red wines, Carmenere is being touted as the heir apparent. Carmenere might have slipped into Chile from France in the 1850s. For over 150 years this grape grew in Chile where they thought it was a clone of Merlot. It was only as recent as 1994 when a French ampelographer (ampelography is the study of grape varieties), Professor Jean-Michel Boursiquot, visited the region and during a vineyard tour pointed out the fact that what they thought was Merlot all this time was in fact Carmenere. With this knowledge, the Chilean winemakers have been improving their Carmenere wine-making skills ever since and are now making world-class wines with this almost forgotten grape varietal.

The trip was excellent! Much thanks to the Chilean Embassy here in Jamaica and to Ambassador Garcia for facilitating the visit. We concluded each day with fantastic Chilean culinary delights and some great wines.

Cheers! Try a Carmenere today.

Chris Reckord is an independent wine consultant who operates DeVine Wine Services with his wife Kerri-Anne. Chris & Kerri are also part owners of Jamaica’s first and only wine-only bar — Bin 26 Wine Bar. Please send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com. Follow us on twitter.com/DeVineWines