We recently wrote about four Chilean Sauvignon Blanc wines that were exceptionally impressive. The Sauvignon Blanc grape has risen in importance in Chile in the past 30 years, and based on the quality of the previous four wines it is easy to see why. You can read more about the grape and it’s place in Chile, as well as our review of those four wines by clicking here.
In this article we’ll take a look at four additional wines from this group, all Sauvignon Blanc and all from Chile’s Coastal Region. Vineyards in these areas are close to the Pacific Ocean, and the grapes benefit from cooler temperatures and fog that runs through river valleys cutting through the Coastal Mountains. It seems like a perfect place to grow this grape. Let’s see what we found inside these four bottles.
2020 Matetic Vineyards EQ Coastal Sauvignon Blanc – vineyards here are only six miles from the ocean, planted on gentle hills. Soil is primarily granite based. The weather was cold and dry throughout much of the
season. A twelve hour cold soak was followed by fermentation in a combination of vessels, including stainless steel tanks. 30% of the juice was fermented in neutral oak, then an additional four months was spent on the lees. What did we think?
A light straw colored wine, it exhibits a more tropical profile along with some peach and grapefruit. This has beautiful body and texture, with great mouthfeel. There is some spice on the palate. The finish is long and has great acid and freshness. This is an excellent wine at an SRP of $19.99. Value List addition here.
2021 Montes Wines Limited Selection Sauvignon Blanc – grapes are from the Leyda Valley, with the vineyards located about 7 miles from the ocean. The year saw more moisture after several years of drought, and a
late season bout of rain caused some scurrying in the vineyards, as the vines were thinned out to promote air circulation around the remaining clusters. The grapes were cold macerated, slowly fermented at cold temperatures and saw no oak during the process. What was the result?
This one was the outlier. Pale straw with green tones, it looked similar, but the nose was filled with ripe frit, more tropical including pineapple. It was much the same on the palate, as the ripe tropical fruit lasted throughout. This is a bit of a Sauvignon Blanc tropical fruit bomb. It maintains good acid which balances out the lush profile. Very different from the rest of the group, with more in your face fruit which would make you think it comes from a warmer area. SRP of $15.
2021 Viña Tabali Talinay Sauvignon Blanc – grapes here are from the Limari Valley, and specifically the coolest climate area within the valley, only 5-6 miles from the Pacific with constant ocean breezes. Harvest in these
vineyards can be up to three weeks later than the rest of the coastal region due to the lower temperatures. Soils are primarily limestone. Grapes are hand picked and fermentation was in small stainless steel tanks held at low temperatures. Our impressions?
This juice has a very pale color. The nose is peach, citrus and blackcurrant bud, with minerality. On the palate the entry is very smooth, with flavors of citrus highlighting lemon. Great acid cleans the palate and it ends fresh and long. The acidity builds at the back, making for a clean, bright finish. This is a very nice wine at an SRP of $24. Extremely well made, as they all are. Another Value List wine.
2020 Casas del Bosque La Cantera Sauvignon Blanc – the vineyards for this wine are in the coolest and westernmost section of the Casablanca Valley. In Chile west means the ocean, so the grapes here are also quite close to
the Pacific. They get frequent fogs in the morning and good diurnal temperature ranges. Diurnal refers to the range between the high and low temperature of the 24 hour day, and larger ranges tend to allow grapes to see cooler periods and maintain their acid through the ripening season. This is key for Sauvignon Blanc. This wine was fermented in stainless steel and then left on the lees for a few weeks. Our thoughts?
A light straw in color, the wine presents a pretty classic Sauvignon Blanc nose of citrus, with grapefruit, and blackcurrant bud. There’s also something richer and more tropical lurking about. The palate is about the citrus fruit. It has a good finish which is clean, but not quite as long as the other three wines above. This is a solid wine at its SRP of $18.
With these four wines we complete our current look at Chile’s Coastal Sauvignon Blancs. The grape is still expanding its footprint in the country, with vineyards moving south into cooler climes and north into the desert. There will be much more to talk about in the years ahead, but for now we can content ourselves with enjoying the current juice, which is pretty excellent.
A votre santé!
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