Echeverria 'No Es Pituko' Carignan 13.5% 75cl

Producer:

Viña Echeverría is a family-run estate winery, owned and managed by the Echeverría family. Established in 1930, but with an agricultural heritage going back to the 1700s, Viña Echeverría is as much today, as always, driven by a shared passion for winemaking and an uncompromising search for excellence. Viña Echeverría combines nearly a century of viticulture and winemaking experience with a modern state-of-the-art winery, to produce an extensive collection of quality wines. The 'No es Pituko' range represents a radical departure from the rest of the more traditional Echeverría wines, both in look and make￾up, being vinified naturally, without any additions at any stage. Viña Echeverría has recently been awarded its Sustainable Winery status by Wines of Chile, as well as its ISO9000 certification. 

Vineyard:

The vines are grown in the Valle de Maule, which stretches for around 60 miles. The centre of its wine production lies 180 miles south of Santiago at a latitude of 35°S. Long, warm and dry summers, offer the vines a long, vegetation period. The climate rarely experiences frost in the spring, which avoids disruption at flowering. The lack of rainfall continues throughout the growth period, which forces the vines to send their roots deeper into the soil, in search of water and nutrients, resulting in complexity. The soils are very old and are made up of granitic sandy loam, which is formed from granite from the Coastal Mountains. The soils are full of quartz and are mineral-rich, which enables the vines to express their full fruit potential. The vineyard is sustainably cultivated and the grapes are harvested by hand. 

Winemaking:

No es Pituko' is Chilean slang for 'it ain't fancy' reflecting the fact that this wine was vinified naturally, without any additions at any stage. The Carignan grapes were taken to the winery in 18-kg boxes to preserve the quality. They were destemmed, pressed and cool macerated for four days, before being fermented with wild yeasts from the environment. Fermentation took place in stainless steel tanks at temperatures of 23 to 27°C and lasted for 12 to 15 days, with gentle extraction of aromas and colour. The wine was made without the addition of any sulphur, and was bottled without fining or filtration, which may result in a slightly cloudy appearance. 

Tasting Note:

A naturally made, fruity wine with expressive notes of rich plum and ripe black fruits accompanied by subtle spicy notes of cinnamon, and a touch of star anise. Lovely fresh palate with fine tannins and subtle earthy tones.