Chile's Natural Wine Scene

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40 BACK TO the future Natural wine from Chile is flourishing, but far from it being a hip new trend, some winemakers never really departed from the hands-off approach that has been practised by their family wineries for centuries, writes Amanda Barnes “NATURAL WINE” might be a relatively over-talked subject in the wine circles of London, Paris and New York, but in the distant stretches of Chile the discussion is only just starting – or arguably never stopped. The growing undercurrent of natural wine production is further proof that this skinny country is not just screw-top plonk, but diversified and thrilling. The roots of the natural wine movement in Chile start in the south. The heart of this artisanal production lies in Bío Bío, Maule and Itata, where vines date from beyond 200 years ago and vineyards are still ploughed by horses. “We let the juice macerate and ferment naturally and spontaneously, completely at room temperature. It is a very simple and traditional winemaking method,” says Renan Cancino, winemaker of El Viejo Almacen in Maule: natural, old vine Carignan with zero added sulphur. “It is the way that my family used to make wine at home. We are respecting this campesino [countryside] method that’s been used for over 200 years.”

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A feature looking into the natural wine scene in Chile.

Transcript of Chile's Natural Wine Scene

Page 1: Chile's Natural Wine Scene

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BACK TOthe future

Natural wine from Chile is flourishing, but far from it being a hip new trend, some

winemakers never really departed from the hands-off approach that has been

practised by their family wineries for centuries, writes Amanda Barnes

“NATURAL WINE” might be arelatively over-talked subject in the winecircles of London, Paris and New York,but in the distant stretches of Chile thediscussion is only just starting – orarguably never stopped. The growingundercurrent of natural wine productionis further proof that this skinny country isnot just screw-top plonk, but diversified

and thrilling. The roots of the naturalwine movement in Chile start in thesouth. The heart of this artisanalproduction lies in Bío Bío, Maule andItata, where vines date from beyond 200years ago and vineyards are stillploughed by horses.

“We let the juice macerate and fermentnaturally and spontaneously, completely

at room temperature. It is a very simpleand traditional winemaking method,”says Renan Cancino, winemaker of ElViejo Almacen in Maule: natural, old vineCarignan with zero added sulphur. “It isthe way that my family used to makewine at home. We are respecting thiscampesino [countryside] method that’sbeen used for over 200 years.”

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INHERITED KNOWLEDGEWhile modern counterparts might seenatural wine as a romantic return totradition, for some small producers inChile, there was never a departure. “I’mthe seventh generation on the vineyard,and natural wine for us is ancestral,” saysCacique Maravilla winemaker ManuelMoraga Gutierrez, from Bio Bio. “I didn’tknow you were supposed to addanything else to wine. Someone once toldme in 2010 to add yeast in thefermentation… it was the worst wine Iever made.”

The natural winemaking movement inChile is partly due to this local intuitionand inherited knowledge, and partly tocontemporary crusades against chemicalviniculture. One of Chile’s greatestapostles in rescuing old vines andvarieties is a Frenchman: Louis-AntoineLuyt. He is outspoken about Chile’sunparalleled expansion into new regions,

when – in his opinion – many of the mosthistoric wine regions in the south arebeing wrongly neglected, and the smallfamily producers with it.

His natural wines mainly come fromdry-harvested, century-old vineyards thatare managed organically by small,independent producers. “In the rest of theworld to have vineyards over 100 or 200years old would be spectacular… aheritage site! What is incredible here isthe environment in which you canproduce the vine – it is healthy, there islittle risk of illnesses and it is easy to

make biologically-friendly wines, itshould be an obligation.”

Protecting this heritage, and observingthe high quality of the old vines in Chile,is what has also led De Martino tobecome a leading larger winery tochampion ancestral techniques such asageing wine in old clay vessels, andinclude natural wines in their portfolio.“Orange wine is very trendy, but wedecided to make an amber wine becausein the past Chile made white wines withthe skins,” says Marcelo Retamal, DeMartino’s head winemaker talking abouttheir Viejas Tinajas Muscat. “They madethe wine like this 300 years ago. But it is aniche today.”

A HARD SELLWhile the natural wine movement isgrowing within Chile, being niche is alimitation abroad. Low demand, and apoor association with the term “natural

wine” makes it less feasible tosell natural (and organic) wine inthe UK, suggests Retamal:“[Most of our lines] aren’tnatural wines, because we addsulphur, but we have organicgrapes and we don’t useanything else. We produce 1.8million bottles and export to allparts of the world. Today naturalwine is a niche wine… if youproduce 1.8 million bottles ofnatural wine, it doesn’t sell.”

Part of the sales problem is theinconsistency you still find. “I like theidea of natural wines,” says MarceloPapa, head winemaker for Chile’s biggestproducer, Concha y Toro, which has someorganic lines, although as of yet nonatural wines. “But in my point of viewwhat happened with organic wines 20years ago is happening now with naturalwines – the idea is great but you findmany in the market with defects.”

Even small natural wine producers inChile are aware of this double-edgedsword in labelling wines as natural.“Natural wine has become so hipster,”

says Leonardo Erazo of Rogue Vine, “itseems you can get away with faulty winesby being ‘natural’ – you shouldn’t. Being‘natural’ and good is not the same thing.”

Even larger industry adopter, Emiliana,has stepped back from its intentions tomarket a no-added sulphur natural winein the UK because of the concerningimpact on branding. Head winemaker ofEmiliana (Chile’s biggest biodynamic andorganic producer) Noelia Orts confirmedit wouldn’t be launching “until we arecompletely sure of the quality… We don’thave 100% certainty about how the[natural] wines will arrive to Europe viathe Panama Canal.”

RISK TAKERS“Natural” will arguably never have 100%certainty, and perhaps that is part of itscharm. But while opening one erroneousnatural wine might be forgivable,managing a large brand with limitedcontrol at the receiver end is risky. “Wedon’t add any sulphur before sending ourwines,” comments Cancino, who exportsto Brazil. “The people buying our wineknow how we make it, and want to haveit without any sulphur. I will take thisrisk, but I don’t know if bigger winerieswant to.”

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> The rise of natural, or minimalintervention winemaking in Chileshould be seen as a revival of oldtraditions rather than a new trend.

> The country’s climate and lack ofvineyard pests make it particularlysuitable for this hands-off approach.

> The challenge for Chile lies in a needto ship its wines long distancesacross the equator, which raisesconcerns about the stability of winesmade with no added sulphur.

> The additional costs of workingorganically are a further challengefor Chile, whose wines carry anaverage FOB price of US$29/case.

chi le: natural wine

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‘I’m the seventh generation onthe vineyard, and natural wine

for us is ancestral. I didn’t knowyou were supposed to add

anything else to wine’

Feature findings

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8,000 miles, via the Caribbean. “Our totalsulphur is less than 100ppm,” sayswinemaker Andrea Leon, whose TheCollection portfolio in biodynamicLapostolle follows many naturalprinciples, “so they could be consideredorganic, which is the minimum we canadd considering the wine is taking a trip

over the equator.” Along with distance travelled,

price too is a thorn Chile’s side.Organic and biodynamicproduction (an almostprerequisite for natural wine) iscostly. Chile’s average FOB pricestands at $29 per case, which

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The risk, with an unfiltered naturalwine, is not negligible. “When youtransport the wine,” explains Retamal,“the problem is summer time inside of thecontainer. Sometimes you have 40°C andif you don’t have sulphur, fungus mightdevelop inside and you have more cloudyor dirty wine.”

Sulphur (a natural component in grapes)is generally added to protect wines fromdeveloping fungus after leaving thewinery’s controlled environment. There isno fast and strict rule on the sulphur limitfor a wine to be considered natural, butbonafide natural wine enthusiasts willgive a general consensus that it shouldcontain less than 40ppm (compared toorganic wine at <140ppm, commercialwine at <350ppm, and dried raisins at<2,000ppm).

LONG JOURNEYChile’s location puts it at a severedisadvantage in exporting natural wines.Natural wine produced in France onlyhas to face a 400-odd mile journey acrossthe British channel to a consumer’s glassin London; but from Chile, producershave to prepare their wines to travel some

‘The people buying our wineknow how we make it, and wantto have it without any sulphur. I

will take this risk, but I don’tknow if bigger wineries want to’

NATURAL:> De Martino, Viejas Tinajas

(Berkmann Wine Cellars)Pick between the floral yet firmamber Muscat, or the wild anddelicate Cinsault – both from Itataand aged in old clay tinajas.

> Louis-Antoine Luyt, TrequilemuCarignan (Les Caves de Pyrene)Luyt’s Carignan is grippy andearthy, but if you want somethinglighter try the Pinot Noir or the fruit-forward Cinsault.

> J Bouchon, País Salvaje (Bancroft Wines)A full-fruit, floral País made naturally with carbonic maceration. Drink it chilled.

> Rogue Vine, Grand Itata Blanco(Indigo Wine)A textural white Muscat blend fromItata with fragrant, floral notes and atouch of spice.

> Teillery, Syrah (Vintage Roots)A no-added-sulphite Syrah with thebright fruit of Chile’s red wineheartland, Maipo.

BIODYNAMIC AND/OR ORGANIC:> Matetic, Black Label Syrah,

(Armit Wines)No additives, just silky, perfumed,rich Syrah from this biodynamicproducer in San Antonio.

> Villalobos, Carignan Reserva(Les Caves de Pyrene)Old-vine Carignan that is unfiltered,unfined and biodynamic with almosthedonistic aromas of Carignan fruitand graphite.

> Emiliana, Coyam (Boutinot)A rich and complex red blend ofseven grape varieties that reallydelivers on value.

> Antiyal, Carmenere/CabernetSauvignon/Syrah (Hallgarten Druitt& Novum Wines)Chile’s top biodynamic consultant,Alvaro Espinoza, is also consideredone of Chile’s finest garagewinemakers for this very blend.

> Lapostolle, The CollectionMourvedre (Berkmann WineCellars)Intense and juicy Mourvedre fromthe Apalta hills – unfiltered,unadulterated, simply gorgeous.

Ten natural, organic or biodynamic Chileanwines to try in the UK

De Martino’s Marcelo Retamal

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is now adopted by over 70% of Chile’sbottled wine production. Sustainability,organic, biodynamic and even “natural”are more on the radar of Chile’sproducers than ever before. Winemakerstalk of minimal intervention, they vinifyin concrete eggs, amphorae and oldbarrels, and biodynamic consultants areon the rise. But if exportation isproblematic, and demand is low, where isthis change coming from?

There’s undoubtedly a world tendencyto be discussed here, but perhapssurprisingly (for a country that exportsover 70% of its wine) there’s a domestictrend too. Chilean wine journalists, smallproducer wine fairs and the new outcropof wine bars and clubs in the capital,Santiago, are helping to bring about aresurgence of underrated wines such asPais, Muscat, Carignan, Cinsault andPipeño, and with them, traditional,natural winemaking techniques.

While you won’t be seeing a new streamof orange wines from Chile any day soon,change is very much afoot. Theundercurrent of natural wine is growing –or returning – in Chile, and with it ageneral direction towards more authentic,local and stylistically-diverse wines.Whatever your opinion on sulphur, thisnew, old wave is something to becelebrated – and savoured. db

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presents a challenge for those wishing tomanage their vineyards organically.

The climate, however, is there. Chile –similarly to neighbouring Argentina,which also has a blossoming natural, andorganic, wine production – has few

problems of rot, zero phylloxera, and canavoid nematodes and other pests with thecorrect selection of rootstock. The naturaladvantage has promulgated a handful oflarger producers to join De Martino in theranks of producing a natural wine withintheir portfolio.

This year J Bouchon made its firstnatural wine, País Salvaje. “This was a

special wine from wild País vines, so wewanted to make it in a natural way,” sayswinemaker Felipe Ramirez. “When youare making wines in a bigger amount youneed to control lots of different factors…It’s another reality. You can work in this

‘natural’ way in small quantities.”

THE SCENE IMPROVESQuantity and relative price iscertainly a factor holding backproducers from switching toorganic or biodynamic, but that ischanging. “There aren’t morebiodynamic producers in Chilebecause it requires moreobservation and knowledge of the

vineyard – more anticipation ofproblems – which is maybe harder in theshort term,” says Julio Bastias, winemakerof Matetic, a leading biodynamicproducer, “but every day there are morepeople that are working in this direction.”

This direction is also receiving a bigpush from the industry body, Wines ofChile, with its Sustainability Code, which

‘You can work in thisnatural way in

small quantities’

chi le: natural wine

Cacique Maravilla takes a very hands-off approach to its grapes

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Without a strict internationallegislation laid out, “natural wine” is arather wishy-washy term. For thepurposes of this article, natural winehas been defined as:

> Sustainably farmed, organicand/or biodynamic grapes (withor without certification)

> No foreign yeasts or bacteria inwine production

> No sugar or acid adjustments inwine production

> No new oak> Minimal/no fining or filtration> Minimal/no added sulphur in

bottling

Defining the term

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