Viu 1 Malbec 2021

This wine comes from cuartel no. 4 of the San Carlos vineyard, near Cunaco, in the heart of the Colchagua Valley. Planted more than a century ago, these Malbec vines are rooted in alluvial clay-sand soils that are very porous and well drained. Their naturally low yields favour concentrated grapes and a precise expression of this Chilean terroir.

The grapes are harvested by hand into 12 kg crates and go through three successive sortings, in the vineyard and then in the cellar, before and after destemming. A six-day cold pre-fermentation maceration at 10 °C precedes fermentation in small stainless-steel tanks, with selected yeasts and four pump-overs a day. Total maceration lasts 21 days. The wine is then aged for fifteen months in untoasted French oak foudres (55%) and French oak barriques (45%), then bottled without filtration.

This wine reveals notes of redcurrant, red berries, blue berries, black cherry, fresh plum, violet, fresh herbs, sweet spices and minerality. The aromatic profile thus combines bright fruit, floral notes and refined herbal nuances. The palate offers deep, juicy fruit, carried by vibrant acidity, lovely tension and very supple tannins; the persistent, well-defined finish retains an elegant freshness.

It was Hernán Cortés who, from the very conquest of Mexico, ordered vines to be planted in 1524. Winegrowing gradually spread south from Mexico, reaching Chile in 1555. During the first 3 centuries of colonisation, the only grape grown in Chile was país, a characterless, very productive black grape variety. It was not until the middle of the 19th century that noble varieties were introduced: mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. Twenty years later, winemaking was modernised under the impetus of wealthy landowners and French experts who had been put out of work by phylloxera in Europe. Chile stretches 4,300 kilometres from north to south. It is squeezed between the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Andes to the east, the Atacama Desert to the north, and the plains and glaciers of Patagonia to the south. These natural barriers prevented phylloxera from entering the country. Although the country is only 160 kilometres wide, it enjoys ideal conditions for growing grape varieties from hot, intermediate and cool regions alike, so much so that it is often described as a paradise for winegrowing. With nearly 300 estates producing bottled wine, Chile ranks between 6th and 8th in the world.