Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I had two vintages to taste of the top Syrah from Apalta, starting with the 2010 Pangea Apalta Vineyards Syrah, which matured in 40% new French oak barrels for some 20 months. 2010 could be considered a classical vintage, fresh, but it's always warm in the summer in Apalta. The fruit is perfectly ripe and seems to take the aromas of oak well, which are well married with notes of olives and some smoky bacon. The palate is medium to full-bodied with abundant, fine-grained, dusty tannins. A classical and serious Syrah
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
Well-regarded for intense and exceptionally high quality red wines, the Colchagua Valley is situated in the southern part of Chile’s Rapel Valley, with many of the best vineyards lying in the foothills of the Coastal Range.
Heavy French investment and cutting-edge technology in both the vineyard and the winery has been a boon to the local viticultural industry, which already laid claim to ancient vines and a textbook Mediterranean climate.
The warm, dry growing season in the Colchagua Valley favors robust reds made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Malbec and Syrah—in fact, some of Chile’s very best are made here. A small amount of good white wine is produced from Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.