Chili – An almost perfect wine

definitely, Chilean wines hit the headlines. After the Chilean Bicicleta wine affair, official partner of the Tour de France, good news comes to reward the viticulture sector in Chile. Renowned wine critic James Suckling awarded the top score of 100/100 to a national wine : The Chadwick Vineyard 2014.

James Sucking is an undisputed American wine critic who has worked for over 30 years for Wine Spectator magazine. From now on, he publishes his reviews on his blog jamessuckling.com. Just like his counterpart James Parker, he is a reference and an icon of wine criticism. Following his recent visit to the vineyards of Chile, the business magazine Capital relayed the enchantment of the Chilean wine sector after the announcement of this supreme note of " 100 »For the Viñedo Chadwick cabernet sauvignon 2014. In 2015, his counterpart Robert Parker had honored 204 french wines, some of which went back to 1945.

Recognition for Chilean wine

This Viñedo Chadwick is a red wine from Puente Alto in the Maipo Valley. It is one of the largest wine regions in the country, southwest of the capital, Santiago. The specialist site Wines of Chile announced that this wine was "the first wine to obtain this supreme distinction of perfection., thus showing the growing worldwide recognition of the quality of Chilean wines ”.

During his stay in Chile, James Suckling, accompagné by Jacobo Andrade Garcia Llamas, tasted more than 600 wines. According to him, the Viñedo Chadwick is "a wine that characterizes the Chilean greatness in the matter, thanks to its purity, its structure and finesse which compete with the best reds in the world ”.

James Suckling

A few years earlier, the reviewer did not hesitate to put Chilean wines on the international stage by stating that "the diversity and excellence in their elaboration is impressive and the trend seems to increase with each of my trips here. Chilean wine competes with the best in the world ”.

After the announcement of this title, President of Viñedo Chadwick, Eduardo Chadwick said : “It is a great pride for our vineyard to obtain this great recognition for our wine, and for Chile […] I want to take this opportunity to thank my entire team for their work and their commitment to quality for all these years.”.

Viñedo Chadwick is not his first try as critics have named him one of the 5 best wines of the Maipo Valley. The Wine Advocate gave the vintage 2008 a score of 96/100 and Wine Spectator gave the vintage 2011 the note of 92/100. This wine has also won numerous awards such as the silver medal at the Decanter World Wine Awards for its vintage. 2001, as well as a second silver medal by Mundus Vini. Excellence comes at a price as Viñedo Chadwick is the wine with the third highest price for a red wine from Chile..

Based on Wine-Searcher.com price history, you will still have to spend on average 191 € to purchase a bottle of Viñedo Chadwick.

The Maipo vineyard

© The Wine List Please

The first vines were imported to Chile by the conquistadors in the 16th century. Still almost non-existent on international markets at the dawn of the years 1980, Chili, free from phylloxera and mildew, has become the fifth largest exporter in the world by volume and the eighth largest producer.

The Maipo Valley is certainly the most emblematic region of the central zone of Chile. The Cabernet Suvignon grape variety has greatly contributed to the reputation of the valley, but we also find Carménère there. The region was made famous by two renowned producers : La Concha y Toro and Viña Santa Rica.

Maipo Valley is special for two reasons : its strategic location just a few kilometers from Santiago and Valparaiso, and its topography, which makes it possible to produce several grape varieties at different altitudes. So, as well as the majority of the valleys of the central zone of Chile, the Maipo valley produces a large amount of wine, and this industry is one of its main tourist attractions.

Jean-Nicolas Mouretin