Region
Maule was one of the first areas of Chile to be planted with vines. Part of the Central Valley region, it stretches for around 60 miles, with the centre of wine production around 180 miles south of Santiago. Slightly cooler and damper than other Central Valley regions it enjoys the same extended growing season, giving grapes a balance of ripeness and acidity. It is also beginning to see success with dry-farming methods and old vine varietals such as Carignan.
Producer
Bodegas Volcanes de Chile was founded in 2009 with a single mission: to create wine from grapes grown in Chile’s distinctive volcanic soils. Head Winemaker Pilar Diaz describes their philosophy as ‘To produce wines which reflect this unique and carefully studied origin and display the purity of the grape varietals without excessive use of oak. For us the volcanic character is an attribute which makes our wines more vibrant and richer with greater complexity in aromas and on the palate.’ Chile has over 2,900 volcanoes meaning that this bodega sources from vineyards across the country. Each grower produces grapes that uniquely reflect their own terroir, giving winemakers an enviable range of options to choose from.
Viticulture
The soils are more evolved and were formed from igneous rocks, both volcanic and intrusive, produced by the magma activity over different geological periods for millions of years until the present. The loamy-clay and sandy-loam soils have mineralogy with a high concentration of elements such as iron, magnesium, potassium, calcium and sodium among others. Together they enable the vineyard to feed itself, gain balance and survive in this extreme area, which is mainly dryfarmed with minimum labor. The climate is warm temperate, with fresh, wet winters and average rainfall of 500 mm. Summers are dry with a maximum of 29ºC-32ºC by day and a minimum of 11ºC-13ºC at night.
Vinification
The grapes are manually harvested into 12 kg crates. After de-stemming, the grapes are carefully sorted before they go into the crusher. Afterwards the grapes undergo a pre-fermentative cold maceration (5-7 days at 6°C-8°C), in order to obtain the greatest colour intensity and concentration of aromas. After this, alcoholic fermenation begins, using selected yeasts and maintaining strict temperature control to ensure that they do not exceed 28°C. Successive pump-overs are used to extract the right level of polyphenols from the skins. Once the alcoholic fermentation had finished, a post-fermentative maceration takes place to enhance the structure and the polymerization of the tannins. The total time in the tank is 26-30 days. Then, each wine is transferred into French oak barrels (30% new, plus second and third use), where the malolactic fermentation takes place and the wine is aged for 15 months.
Food Match
Roast lamb, steak, stews game, duck, charcuterie and strong cheeses.
Awards
Tim Atkin – 91 pts
Descorchados – 94 pts
