Loma Larga Vineyard prepares to bottle its first Chilean Syrah created from start to finish in 400 liter barrels.
The idea is to create a wine less influenced by new wood – I saw it in the cellars of Miguel Torres in Penedes several years ago – using larger barrels to decrease contact with the wood by increasing volume using 500 liter sherry barrels, instead of the traditional 225 liter bordelaise barrels.
The novelty of the process – something that may very well become a trend – is to carry out all ethanol and malolactic fermentation and aging in the same large 400 liter barrels, allowing the wood to marry the fruit and add complexity and more balance from the get go. The first records describing the fermentation process in 225 liter barrels for this purpose belonged to brothers Charles and Sebastian Villard. They described the process during the presentation of their first wine. At that time they also explained how difficult it was to get the juice and skins in the barrel with both lids on and how experimental and confidential the whole system was to wet the cap. Using this technique the brothers made their Syrah Tanagra 2005, a Casablanca Valley wine with spiced flavors, a dark wine both friendly in tannins and elegant in its potency; if I’m not mistaken they are now producing the second version.
Then, in the midst of the harvest of 2007 I came across the Loma Larga experience, where as of 2006 they were using the large 400 liter barrels. I travelled out to their cellar in Casablanca to see the technique in action for the first time. At that time Emeric Genevière-Montignac, the house oenologist, was posed to introduce the grapes from his best Syrah, recently pressed with their juice in these new French oak recipients, again with both lids on tight. The 2006 had been aged in their first large barrel, the must wine of sufficient color and tannins, but almost all the skins and pips absent. The new task at hand, with the entire must, wasn’t easy, much less so given my presence and a rather indiscreet camera in hand. Finally, with all the wit and genius abundant in South America, the enthusiastic team was able to put together a set piece that made it possible to pass the capricious mass through the barrel’s small opening. The result was so good, that in contrast to the experiment of the previous year, the 2007 Syrah will soon be bottled separately.
Maybe Loma Larga is the first to show results using this new system, but we know the winemaker is far from alone in their endeavors. Viña Casa Silva is also using the same 400-liter barrels supported by their practical pigeage system (to wet the cap) called OXO Wines. The oenologist Mario Geisse uses said technique to get the maximum expression from the vintages of wine made using the interesting experiment of micro-terroirs. That’s where they saw it first and it’s what the Gabler-Riquelme-Tapia trio wanted for the fermentation of their carignan grape from the dry-land terroir they’ve been developing at the vineyard in Angostura since 2007.
This year I went back to Loma Larga right in the middle of the harvest of their best Syrah grapes, and I personally verified the genius applied in 2007 is still working perfectly and has even been improved by getting the marc right to the end of the barrel. I was also lucky enough to try the 2007 version which will be called Rapsodia (*), on the market in limited amounts (at US$160 FOB the crate) before the end of the year.
For now I can say the Rapsodia 2007, still in the barrel – with a small boost blended with malbec and cabernet franc – has the ideal concentration the world would ask of the great Syrah, today positioned at the top of the wines coming out of Loma Larga ($17,000). In addition, the Rapsodia 2007 already has the spice character in the mouth that identifies the best cool climate wines in Chile, and the same vibrant, natural and enviable acids that make it stand out from all the rest. In the nose the wine today still shows the prevailing yet subtle touch of wood as it beats out the spice character of the wine, with hints of mineral of the cool climate Syrah; but the combination of black fruit, exquisite acids and deep violet color are the most prominent features. Little did I notice but at the end of the my visit the tasting had extended to me skipping dessert and downing two cups of wine, with absolutely no regrets, a welcome experiment indeed!
www.lomalarga.com
After many years relating with the Chilean winemaking industry, and after having seen some remarkable cartwheels and flip flops, it would seem that today there are only two assured methods of producing wine with character and identity. The first is to have a fixed idea of the wine you want to produce, find the terroir where to plant the right vines that will bring it to life, and… make it. The second, start with a terroir you already have, study it down to the very last detail, see if you can produce a line of wines within the price range you aspire to, and decide if it’s all worth the effort. This last method was the one chosen by Luis Felipe Diaz, a commercial engineer and owner, as part of the family, and general manager of Loma Larga Vineyard. In the image, Syrah vines.
Before deciding to plant and choose the best grape for his lands, Diaz already had a clear idea that the primordial element of making good wine was the fruit. His goal was to achieve something of greater value that would be considered good in Chile. With the rigor inherent to engineers he studied and monitored temperature and sent samples for soil analysis from several different areas of his land, located about three kilometers from the highway via Camino Lo Ovalle. He would only plant if the results of his research and studies would allow him to create wines he could sell for over US$60 the crate on the market, a goal he has fulfilled and then some.
Choosing reds…
Diaz was clear on the fact that his lands in Casablanca were classified as cool climate and looked to other similar areas in the world. His model was based on no less than the Rhone wine region, specifically the Côte Rôtie, where some of the best cool-climate Syrahs come from. Considering going all in for a quality Syrah, his main concern was if he could achieve the minimum 3000 hours above 10ºC from bud break to ripeness. This far from minor detail is, according to Diaz, indispensible to obtaining the perfect phenolic ripeness of the grape, without which there’s absolutely no chance of producing good wines, or of fixing an identity to the wines from his terroir.
It’s this that makes the autumn cold spells, which burn the leaves and halt the plants’ activity, his chief worry, as they prevent the grapes from ripening. To his credit and a little luck, the poor soil in Loma Larga, currently where his vines are planted, is surrounded by a long ridge of hills (hence the name). They act as a screen sheltering the terroir from the southern winds, but allow beneficial mists through. Halfway through March, his Syrah vines, above all his Cabernet Franc, look balanced and ready for harvest at the end of May.
The reds to come…
Guided by Emeric Geneviere-Montignac, the French oenologist in charge of the project, I visited the fermentation warehouse and the aging cellar, perfectly sized for today’s current level of production. Although Loma Larga has earned renown for its reds, Emeric explains that they also make white wines, especially Sauvignon Blanc which is left on the lees for six months; there’s no wood, but it has a good body and goes out for sale far later than most of the sauvignons from the valley.
We tried the 2006 reds and first vintages of 2007. Some only show traces of the barrel, and others are still not out on the market yet. Among them I was surprised by a really interesting Merlot 2007 that was full of complexity, rich structure with fresh red fruit flavors and flowers such as roses and violets and hints of tea and chocolate. The entire 2007 harvest looks marvelous with an intensity and fruit concentration greater than the previous year, which to my mind screams if you find any bottles of this particular vintage, do yourself a favor, don’t wait, buy them if you can! And yes, the Syrah is out of this world. But seeing as we have talked about it extensively let me tell you about the other wines I was impressed with, in particular the Cabernet Franc and the Malbec – the only one produced in Casablanca – both in its 2006 and 2007 vintage. The Malbec BG 2006 is quite different from the rest of the Chilean and Argentinian Malbecs: somewhat rustic it has balanced freshness and acids, no over ripe fruit, hints of spice and excellent persistence in the mouth.
But, to my taste, the true laureate is the Cabernet Franc: a sip flashes cherries, plums and branch of red fruit all the way to the back of your brain. It’s quite frankly an exquisite wine, with wonderful vibrant acids and well-structured tannins. Its 2007 version, which has a good percentage of new barrel, still feels a little wild in the mouth. But, the fruit concentration of this wine makes me think it will be a sure candidate to follow in the footsteps of its older 2005 version, the vintage that won the Austrian Trophy as the best Cabernet Franc in the world.
