Winemaker Notes
Soulpit is a new wine from Pedro Parra's expanding operation, made with old-vine País from Ñepas close to the winery. Volcanic and intense, it's a subtle, perfumed, whole bunch- fermented red with floral top notes, raspberry and pomegranate fruit and stemmy freshness.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
There is a new País from a vineyard planted in 1895 that he rents in Ñipas on black basalt soil, first produced in 2020 but I tasted the 2021 Soulpit. It fermented in concrete with 60% stems for 18 days and with a 30-day maceration. It matured in oak vat for 11 months. País does not deliver high alcohol, and this is only 12.5%. It has a mixture of flowers, cherries in liqueur, aromatic herbs and brick dust, a mixture of the Comando G and Rayas styles and characters. It has more generous tannins, not as tight as the ones from granite. Apparently, there's an even better País that I should taste one of these days soon.
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James Suckling
Bright , ethereal and characterful, full of wild raspberries, anise, white pepper funk, tiger balm and licorice. Tight and slightly chewy tannins give it a somewhat austere feel, if not a little rustic, too. That said, there is a lot to like on the palate, showing the attractive agility and super tanginess and assertiveness of a good pais. Very old vines from silty basaltic soils.
Planted as the first vitis vinifera wine grape in the U.S., País has a long significant history in the Americas. Originally from Spain, where the grape is known as Listán Prieto, it was brought by Spanish colonists to Mexico in 1540 and, later, during the late 1700s, to Mission San Diego in California where it would take on another new name, Mission. Propagated for its use as a sacramental wine, Mission remained important in California until the spread of phylloxera in the 1880s. Somm Secret—In Chile it is called Pais. In Argentina, Pais is known as Criolla Chica.
Dramatic geographic and climatic changes from west to east make Chile an exciting frontier for wines of all styles. Chile’s entire western border is Pacific coastline, its center is composed of warm valleys and on its eastern border, are the soaring Andes Mountains.
Chile’s central valleys, sheltered by the costal ranges, and in some parts climbing the eastern slopes of the Andes, remain relatively warm and dry. The conditions are ideal for producing concentrated, full-bodied, aromatic reds rich in black and red fruits. The eponymous Aconcagua Valley—hot and dry—is home to intense red wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Merlot.
The Maipo, Rapel, Curicó and Maule Valleys specialize in Cabernet and Bordeaux Blends as well as Carmenère, Chile’s unofficial signature grape.
Chilly breezes from the Antarctic Humboldt Current allow the coastal regions of Casablanca Valley and San Antonio Valley to focus on the cool climate loving varieties, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Chile’s Coquimbo region in the far north, containing the Elqui and Limari Valleys, historically focused solely on Pisco production. But here the minimal rainfall, intense sunlight and chilly ocean breezes allow success with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The up-and-coming southern regions of Bio Bio and Itata in the south make excellent Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Spanish settlers, Juan Jufre and Diego Garcia de Cáceres, most likely brought Vitis vinifera (Europe’s wine producing vine species) to the Central Valley of Chile sometime in the 1550s. One fun fact about Chile is that its natural geographical borders have allowed it to avoid phylloxera and as a result, vines are often planted on their own rootstock rather than grafted.