Winemaker Notes
Our Chilensis Pinot Noir Reserva is a deep and bright pale purplish-red in color with tremendous aromatic complexity, offering intense aromas of red fruits such as strawberries, raspberries, and cherries along with subtle floral notes of roses that intermingle with an elegant touch of aromatic herbs recalling rosemary and oregano, delicately blended with meaty and leathery notes. Subtle aromas of vanilla and moderately intense oak appear due to aging in oak barrels. The palate presents tremendous personality with smooth, elegant tannins. Moderate persistence and juicy acidity make this an ideal wine with white meats, creamy shellfish dishes, pork, and fresh pastas. Recommended serving temperature is 14ºC / 57ºF.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
Maule is the Central Valley’s most southern and coolest zone, reaching a southern latitude of 35°S, yet it is still warmer and drier than Bío-Bío to its south. The Maule Valley enjoys success with a unique set of grapes.
It lays claim to the local variety, Pais (synonymous with Tinta Pais, which is actually Tempranillo), which has dominated much of the region’s area under vine until the recent past. Now many growers, not confined by the tradition and regulations of the Old World, also successfully grow Cabernet Sauvignon.
While Maule’s total area under vine remains relatively static, its old Carignan vineyards are undergoing a great revival. The VIGNO (Vignadores del Carignan Vintners) group, an association in charge of promoting this long-forgotten variety, is getting fantastic results from the old vines in its dry-farmed coastal zones.
The Maule includes the subregions of Talca, San Clemente, San Javier, Parral, Linares and Cauquenes.