Wine brands that can predominate at supermarkets or corner shops are often wholly dismissed in discussions about what to drink. However, I find so much of wine writing is focused on a premium level of wine purchaser that is often both unrelatable, and inherently unrealistic. My father, who was co-founder of the Toronto chapter of the Commanderie de Bordeaux, would assiduously hunt for everyday drinking wines around the £6-7, $8-10 US, $12 CAN mark. If you're grabbing that bottle of wine alongside a grocery shop it only makes sense to have a sense of the major brands on offer, and make the most of utilizing them.
Far and away my favourite ubiquitous wine out there is the Casillero del Diablo range from Chilean heavyweight producers Concha y Toro. The label's moniker, cheerfully as the 'Devil's Cellar', is so explained that in the late 19th century, the winery's founder, Don Melchor (who's legacy has impacted almost all of Chilean wine making... more on that probably later) told workers that devils haunted his prized cellars in order to dissuade interlopers. Nowadays the 'devil's' range isn't near the top of their wine making portfolio, but nonetheless it's both consistently excellent and easily available. Happy days.
The wine growing regions of Chile, situated nearby and to the south of the capital Santiago (visited twice last year... There's Something About Mary... anyone?), allow for tremendous variety of grapes to shine. What's more is that, even though the Casillero del Diablo wines are mass produced at an everyday value, in many instances they are legitimately interesting expressions of their varietal grapes.
My perennial go-to is the Carmenere, a red grape originally from Bordeaux that has become fashionable in Chile. I'll snap it up when I see it on sale anywhere in the world, and that includes excitedly chatting about it with the guys in a well established wine shop in the old school Testaccio neighborhood of Rome. Rich without being overpowering, spicy without being overbearing, it's well tasty enough to drink on its own. It also does well at a summer barbecue in a pinch. The 2012 vintage won a gold medal commendation at an international wine judging last month. The 2012 Merlot and Malbec's also won silver medals and are great on their own.
Another of their reds I particularly like, and one that for me goes especially well with a broad range of food is the Shiraz. Once more pleasantly rich it actually carries a sense of refinement too often lacking in full throttle everyday varietal Shiraz's from Australia. Essentially, the only one of their reds which is a bit average is the Cabernet Sauvignon. The high amounts of sunshine combined with high altitudes can transform the late ripening (thus requiring more sunshine) Cab into wonderful wines even at the lower price end in Chile; however it comes up a bit flat with the Casillero del Diablo, and I look out for the Santa Rita winery in that case.
On the white side, the Viognier matches the Carmenere as a memorable expression of the grape. Traditionally grown in the Rhone Valley in France where it's quite unheralded, Viognier is finding some prominence in places like Australia. It's strength lies in being more aromatic and refreshing than Chardonnay, and has enough flavour for it to go up against prosecco or cocktails as an aperitif. Speaking of which, in Casillero del Diablo's case the Chard is quite enjoyable and versatile with summer food from fish and salads through to lemon chicken. That said, the Sauvignon Blanc, another tasty grape I think Chile can do quite well, that comes off a bit average here, and again I instead look for Santa Rita,
No comments:
Post a Comment