This is a limited edition wine by Catena Zapata and is part of a series of three wines (they also released a Chardonnay and a Bonarda). Each is a ‘natural wine’ with no added sulphites and fermentation takes place in clay pots, where it is aged for a further 9 months. The winemaker is Alejandro Vigil.
A stunning and wild landscape in the heights of the Elqui valley, Viñedos Alcohuaz is one of the most ambitious altitude projects in Chile. Made of Syrah, Grenache and Petit Syrah, the grapes come from 2200m above sea level and made in a winery with all natural wine making methods – crushed by foot in stone pools and aged in cement and large wooden vats.
Viñedos Alcohuaz is a passion project of three parts: Patricio Flaño, an artist at heart who fell in love with the magic of Elqui and took the risk to invest in making Chile’s highest-altitude vineyards; Juan Luis Huerta, the former mayor of the town who brings the local knowledge and knows the region like the back of his hand; and renowned winemaker Marcelo Retamal whose inquisitive nature led him to explore Elqui hunting for new wine adventures where he came across Alcohuaz, and together they are now building one of the most exciting sustainable wineries buried into the mountainsides of stargazing-territory: Elqui.
This is called ‘Chilena’ because it is one the most Chilean of all the varieties in Chile, Pais. Coming from the first criolla grapes that came with the Spanish missionaries 500 years ago, Pais has deep roots but is only recently being elevated to a new level beyond the table wine it used to be. Renan Cancino and his project Huaso de Sauza is one of the projects that has elevated the grape. Made as a natural wine, this is home made in his garage winery with no added sulpher.
Renan Cancino is one of Chile’s most sought-after viticulturists, and while he has made his name for tending vines, his wine production under the Huaso de Sauza brand is also turning heads. As well as Pais, he makes an excellent Carignan and also makes a fruity Grenache. Cancino is a natural winemaker, whose philosophy is making wines as the way they were always made historically in Chile – naked.