Febvre « Wilson on Wines

de Martino Las Cruces Old Vine Malbec Carmenère 2014, Valle de Cachapoal

Posted by admin on July 19, 2018

Wonderful wine. An explosion of tight ripe savoury dark fruits with real concentration and backbone. Lovely balance and great length – 13.5% alcohol. A world away from most alcoholic, oaky luxury Chilean wines, this really is worth trying, despite the price tag.

This would go nicely with most grilled or roast red meats. Lightly spicy barbecued lamb or a gourmet burger.

Expensive, but this one is worth it. I tasted this as part of an article on wines from Itata, the first vineyards planted by the Spanish conquistadores. This is made from the granitic Las Cruces vineyard, planted in 1956 It is a field blend of 75% Malbec and 25% Carmenère.

€40 from O’Briens Wines.

Going off-piste: Itata and Vipava

Posted by admin on January 23, 2016

We drank these two wines for dinner last night, both from lesser-known regions.Both were very good.

Burja Bela 2010, Vipava, Slovenia

Lovely complex ripe fruits, softly textured with a touch of orange peel and a savoury finish with good mineral acidity.

I first came across this wine at a Slovenian wine tasting in Dublin a few years ago; I think it was actually the same vintage. Primož Lavrenčič of Burja estate is a believer in natural wine, made with as little intervention as possible. He farms biodynamically and uses only local grape varieties. In this wine he blends 30% Rebula, 30% Malvasia, 30% Riesling Italico, and 10% Zelen. Despite, or possibly because of its age, the wine is drinking beautifully. Not cheap though at €27.50 – certainly from Sheridans, and probably Green Man Wines in Terenure, they being very keen on natural wines.

De Martino Viejas Tinajas Cinsault 2014
D.O. Secano Interior/Colemu, Chile

A very interesting and enjoyable wine; a strange mix of red cherry and canned strawberries with an earthy note, and some light tannins on the finish. 13% alcohol and almost Beaujolais-like at times in its weight.

This is made from unirrigated old vines down in the Itata Valley in Chile. It was part of a tasting of wines from this region for a forthcoming article in the Irish Times. It sells for €17.99; I am still waiting for a list of stockists.

Tags: Chile, Cinsault, De Martino, Febvre, Itata, Sheridans Cheesemongers, Slovenia

Posted in: Top Drop