Author

Amanda Barnes

Amanda Barnes is a British journalist who has been living in the Southern Hemisphere since 2009, has tried over 500 Malbecs, eaten over 600 Chilean oysters and still has a functioning liver and kidneys (as far as she knows).

The ultimate guide to Bonarda grape variety in Argentina

The essential guide to Bonarda in Argentina

by Amanda Barnes September 3, 2015

written by Amanda Barnes

It might be a tricky one to pronounce at first, but get your lips around an Argentine Bonarda and you’ll find one of Argentina’s most versatile and easy-drinking red varieties. Not to be confused with Bonarda Piemontese from Italy, this variety is Italian but in Europe, it is more commonly known by its French name, Douce Noir.

Bonarda guide

History of Bonarda

Bonarda in Argentina

Bonarda wines in the glass

Top three Bonardaphiles

Best Bonarda wines to try from Argentina

The essential Bonarda wine guide

Hectares planted of Bonarda in Argentina

18,304 hectares

Key descriptors of Bonarda

Deep purple colour. Aromas of red fruit (cherries, plums) & cloves. Dry with soft tannins (low), soft acidity (low) and medium body

Bonarda winemaking styles

A very versatile variety used in range of winemaking styles. Traditional red styles are lightly oaked (6 to 12 months) and have moderate alcohol levels (13%), while new styles range from fresh, carbonic maceration red wines with no oak to sparkling white, rosé or red wines (traditional and tank method). Monovarietals and blends.

September 3, 2015 0 comment

Chile Features By Region Features Travel & Culture

Top 5 Chilean movies

by Amanda Barnes September 1, 2015

written by Amanda Barnes

Seeing as we came up with a top 5 list of Argentine movies, it seems only fair to do the same for neighbouring Chile. Despite a lull in production after the 1973 military coup, Chilean cinema was fairly prolific throughout the 20th century and enjoyed reasonable notoriety.

However, it was not until the late 1990s and early 2000s that Chilean movies achieved significant box office success. Then in 2012, No became the first Chilean film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

So if you are interested in discovering what the country’s film fanatics like to watch, check out one or more of our top 5 Chilean movies.

1. “El chacal de Nahueltoro” (Jackal of Nahueltoro) – 1969

In 1960, José del Carmen Valenzuela Torres, an alcoholic peasant from the small town of Nahueltoro in Chile, brutally murdered Rosa Rivas Acuña and her five children. This film is based on the testimonies of Torres while he was being prosecuted and the notes of journalists who interviewed him. He was eventually sentenced to death by firing squad but not before learning how to read and write.

2. “El Chacotero Sentimental” (The Sentimental Teaser) – 1999

An eccentric DJ named Rumpy hosts a radio call-in show where he helps everyday Chileans with their problems, which range from ridiculous to tragic. This is a must for those wanting a greater understanding of Chilean culture, as it demonstrates how issues are handled with humour and/or denial.

3. “Sexo con Amor” (Sex with Love) – 2003

When parents of fourth-grade students meet to address how the school should deal with sex education, they are forced to re-examine their own views on the subject. The film goes on two show how three couples are ambushed by their own erotic passions and each profess an undying love to their parents.

4. “Machuca” – 2004

Set in 1973 Santiago during Salvador Allende’s socialist government, the film features the impoverished Pedro Machuca as he is integrated into the elite school of his friend Gonzalo Infante under the watchful eye of the school’s director Father McEnroe. This film was nominated for the Ariel Award in 2005 in the category Best Iberoamerican Film and won Most Popular International Film at the 2004 Vancouver International Film Festival.

5. “No” – 2012

Advertising executive René comes up with a plan to defeat Augusto Pinochet in Chile’s 1988 referendum. It details the moment when advertising tactics became widely used in political campaigns. In addition to its Oscar nomination, No won the Art Cinema Award at Cannes Film Festival.

September 1, 2015 0 comment

Chile Features By Region Features Travel & Culture

A Wine Hideout: Visiting Dona Javiera in Maipo

by Amanda Barnes August 27, 2015

written by Amanda Barnes

The winery Dona Javiera comes with a story. Javiera is the name of the sister of one of Chile’s most admired freedom fighters in the early 19th century, Jose Miguel Carrera. The beautiful century-old house is a family home, and one which Carrera would use as a refuge and hideout during the civil war.

Javiera Carrera is known as the woman who sewed Chile’s first flag of independence – the Patria Vieja. Although there is much more to this woman than crafts, says Mac Mitchell who runs nearby Casona Carrera Boutique Hotel – another family home in the village. “There were four siblings in the family, and Javiera and Jose Miguel were the leaders the family. Javiera was the one who really pushed her brother into leading the revolutionary army and kick the fight into full gear. She was the real spur in his ass!”

Unfortunately Carrera and his army were defeated by the ruling forces in Mendoza, Argentina. He was quite brutally executed publicly in the city after his capture. The legacy of Jose Miguel, and his sister Javiera, remain very dear to many Chileans, and this – one of his former homes and hideouts – is declared a national heritage site.

Nowadays it is a wine refuge. Just 40 minutes outside of Santiago, Dona Javiera is located in El Monte – a rural area with a charming, sleepy plaza and handsome tall historic trees that arch over wide gardens.

The historical house was built over 200 years ago in the typical fashion of the time with long galleries and a central patio filled with aromatic orange trees. Some of the rooms are maintained in a similar style with antiques, and Javiera’s original bed.

Walking through the old house gives you an idea of the history of the place, but the wines being made are from new vines around the Central Maipo region. This family winery used to just sell the fruit to other producers, but the eldest son Jose wanted to begin creating their own family heritage and so they asked an old family friend, and a renowned winemaker, Felipe Solminihac to begin making family wines for them.

The collection today is mainly based in reds, as typical for this warmer continental climate of Maipo. Good value reds are

found in each line, but particularly recommended is trying their new icon line – a winemaker’s selection of the best barrels of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Carmenere, and a blend of them all.

After wine tasting and touring around the winery, it is easy to build up an appetite and so we hopped across the village to Casona Carrera – a new boutique hotel that is also in a beautiful historic house. This home is still in the hands of the Carrera family, by the direct descendants of Javiera. For this reason you will see the family crest above the door.

The family still visit the estate on weekends and holidays, but in the meantime it is also open for overnight visitors and day time visitors who can use it as a base to explore the nearby wineries, relax in its vast grounds and to take cooking classes in Chilean cuisine.

Sitting out on the lawn overlooking the vineyards and village of El Monte below, you’ll feel a world away from Santiago and shrouded in a rich historical patrimony of Chile.

Details:

Vina Dona Javiera
+56 2 818 1470
[email protected]

Casona Carrera Boutique Hotel
+56 9 8379 7201
[email protected]

August 27, 2015 0 comment

Mendoza Argentina Features Features By Region Wine

Interview with winemaker Marcelo Pelleriti

by Amanda Barnes August 27, 2015

written by Amanda Barnes

There are few winemakers in the world who can claim 100 perfect Parker points, and who make wines in two continents – Argentinean Marcelo Pelleriti is one of them. Head Winemaker for Bodega Monteviejo in the Uco Valley, and for Chateau Le Gay in Pomerol, Pelleriti has a long career both sides of the Atlantic and is considered one of the best winemakers in Argentina. Amanda Barnes interviews him.

What’s your first memory to do with wine?

When I was five I helped my grandfather pick grapes. He had a big house with vines all over the roof and he used me to pick the grapes in the smaller gaps. We’d put the grapes in big sacks, then crush them with our feet to make ‘vino patero.’

Was there a turning point in your career?

I had two very important harvests when I started to produce Chateau La Violette in France. Everybody can make wine but the idea is to make the wine that you want to. 2005 was a beautiful harvest in France – the perfect year, perfect conditions. But I didn’t feel I could do anything more than represent the climate in the wine.

2006 was a breakthrough because it was a difficult harvest in France and we were doing a new technical vinification, but I started to understand what wine I wanted to make. Powerful, but elegant. I started to understand how I can produce elegant wine with my personality.

You make wine in both France and Argentina. What are the advantages and disadvantages of vinification in each country?

I can’t say I have disadvantages because I am very fortunate to make two harvests a year. It’s a dream for me. In France there is a lot of difference between vineyards and we have more climate influence than in Argentina. I have to adapt my technique to the climatic conditions, and to make wine you have to know what’s happening during pruning, spring and summer. I don’t live in France so I have a lot of respect for the people who live there. Every year when I arrive I try to talk with all my neighbors, because they know the reality of the year.

I have worked 12 harvests there but I’m still a foreigner and you always have to listen to the old men. I learned maybe a bit more in France than here. I was born here and I live here so I know the land more, but you still always have to talk and work with the people who work the vineyards. It’s a big team.

Is there such a thing as luxury wine?

We don’t have luxury wines in Argentina yet … maybe we will in some years, like a hundred! A luxury wine is a wine to collect, but a luxury for me is when I can drink a good wine in the best moment. My best moment is enjoying it with my wife, my family and my friends; and I dream about when I will drink my wine with my son and daughter – that will be my luxury wine.

What is it you most dislike in a wine?

I dislike tasting Malbec from Argentina without our personality. I can’t understand tasting malbec without sweet tannins, or floral notes. Our style is a continental climate and it is completely different to the oceanic climate.

In wine terms, who are your heroes?

Michel Rolland. He has an incredible talent and I have respect for him – I think he is one of the heroes in Argentina because he discovered Malbec.

During harvest, who or what do you pray to?

Jimi Hendrix.

You are a pioneer of bringing rock music and wine together – through your radio show, “In Vino Veritas,” the annual Monteviejo Wine Rock concert, and now Wine Rock in Rio. What’s the relationship between music and wine?

It’s very important. I like music and I like to play the guitar. To make wine we need other motivations. Sometimes we need to fly a bit more and we need good music to create it. I had a good experience last year with lots of musicians where every musician I invited tried to make a blend like a music composition. It was incredible when you tasted the blend and could see how the composition was like their style of music.

Q&A: Marcelo Pelleriti, Winemaker, Mendoza and Pomerol

What do you listen to in the winery?

Always rock and sometimes classical.

Where would you like to be buried?

I’d like be buried with my best wine and favorite guitar … maybe in Mendoza.

What would your last wine, meal and song be?

I’d like to be with my wife in Saint-Jean-de-Luz [south-western France] with a Lindaflor Chardonnay, a lot of oysters and listening to – only one song?! “Little Wind” by Jimi Hendrix.

Do you have any regrets?

Not yet.

What brings you the greatest happiness?

A dream: to have a beautiful music studio, a cellar with a lot of wine from around the world, and to share it with my children.

What do you think would make the world a better place?

In the world there is a lot of egotism, false egos. But if we can remove our egos, our dream of power, and only share and show our passions without ego, we can change the world.

In the end, what really matters?

The most important thing is to enjoy life, and enjoy the present. After that, I don’t know.

August 27, 2015 0 comment

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