GRUS 2020

Name: From Alcohuaz - GRUS - 2020
Brand: Vin du Monde
Price: 28.0 EUR
Availability: OutOfStock

From Alcohuaz

168,00 €

A Chilean high-altitude red with vibrant freshness, where Andean power meets the elegance of great granitic terroirs.

Chile

Vin Red

13.5%

5 to 10 years

Syrah, Grenache, Malbec, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot

750ml
Box of 6 bottles (75cl)

Share

Let's talk little, let's talk wine

Nestled in the upper Elqui Valley, in the heart of the Andean village of Alcohuaz, the GRUS cuvée vineyard spans granitic slopes situated between 1,700 and 2,200 meters above sea level. This extreme terroir in northern Chile benefits from intense sunshine, cool nights, and a dry climate, promoting a slow and complete ripening of the grapes. The vines are cultivated with sustainable practices on terraced plots that dominate the mineral landscape of the Cordillera, imbuing the wine with a fresh, precise identity profoundly shaped by the mountains.

The grapes for the GRUS cuvée are hand-harvested into small crates, then carefully sorted before being gravity-fed into tanks. Fermentation takes place in concrete vats with indigenous yeasts, favoring gentle extractions through moderate pump-overs and punch-downs. The wine is then aged in concrete vats and large wooden foudres to preserve the purity of the fruit and the mineral expression of the high-altitude terroir, without excessive oak influence.

This wine reveals notes of ripe black fruits, crunchy red fruits, and violet, enhanced by touches of sweet spices, pepper, and dried herbs, on a delicately smoky and mineral background. The palate offers a juicy texture, carried by a lively acidity, fine yet structured tannins, and a silky texture, leading to a long, fresh, and savory finish, marked by a persistent return of spices and minerality.

Where are we traveling?

Elqui Valley

It is located in northern Chile, approximately 470 kilometers north of Santiago, in the Coquimbo region, where the Atacama Desert begins to give way to the Andean foothills. The vineyard unfolds in a narrow, steep valley, carved by the Elqui River, between 500 and 2,000 meters above sea level, in a lunar landscape of arid mountains, cacti, and incredibly clear skies — the region also hosts some of the world's most important astronomical observatories. The wine history is intimately linked to Pisco, the Chilean national brandy, of which Elqui has been the historical birthplace since the 16th century, with its massive Muscat plantations. For centuries, no one imagined producing anything else here, until audacious winemakers like Marcelo Retamal of De Martino and the Carabantes family of Viña Falernia dared, in the late 1990s, to plant noble grape varieties at high altitudes, convinced that this extreme terroir offered unique conditions in Chile. The climate is desert and arid, with over 300 days of sunshine per year and almost non-existent rainfall, but the diurnal temperature range is spectacular — sometimes more than a 20-degree difference — and the dry air descending from the Andes offers the grapes slow ripening and intense aromatic concentration, without any pressure from fungal diseases. Elqui Valley has emerged as one of the most exciting frontiers of Chilean viticulture thanks to its vibrant and peppery Syrahs with unexpected freshness, its crisp and mineral Sauvignon Blancs grown at high altitudes, its delicate Pinot Noirs from the highest plots, and its Muscat grapes, heirs to the Pisco tradition, all testifying to a pioneering valley that pushes the limits of what Chilean wine can offer.

The little history of the country

Chile

It was Hernán Cortés who ordered the cultivation of vines upon the conquest of Mexico in 1524. It gradually spread from Mexico southward, reaching Chile in 1555. During the first three centuries of colonization, only país, a characterless and very productive black grape variety, was cultivated in Chile. It was not until the mid-19th century that noble varieties were introduced: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay, mainly. Twenty years later, winemaking was modernized under the impetus of wealthy landowners and French experts who had been forced out of work by phylloxera in Europe. Chile stretches 4,300 kilometers from north to south. It is sandwiched between the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Andes Mountains to the east, the Atacama Desert to the north, and the Patagonian plains and glaciers to the south. These natural barriers prevented phylloxera from entering the country. Although the country is only 160 kilometers wide, it enjoys ideal conditions for growing grape varieties from warm, intermediate, and cool regions, so much so that it is often described as a vineyard paradise. With nearly 300 estates producing bottled wines, Chile ranks between 6th and 8th in the world.

Découvrir les vins du pays