A Brief History of Carménère - Part 2


Last time we took a brief look at the history of Carménère, thanks to the Wines of Chile organization. When we left off, Chile was faced with the question of what to do with the fact that an estimated one-third of what had been thought to be Merlot was actually Carménère. Again, thanks to the Wines of Chile, here’s how they proceeded.

The first true bottle of Carménère to appear on the market in 1996 was the Carmen Grand Vidure 1994, made by the oenologist Álvaro Espinoza. Just two years earlier, it been harvested as a Merlot, also under the name Grande Vidure. One year later, the first officially designated Carménère appeared, a 1996 vintage from Viña Santa Inés. Though cautious at first, a growing number of Chilean wineries steadily became persuaded of Carménère’s potential as a flagship variety. In the 1990s, New World countries had embraced the concept of flagship single varieties such as Malbec in Argentina, Shiraz in Australia and Sauvignon Blanc in New Zealand.

Chile’s Servicio de Agricultura y Ganadería (Department of Agriculture & Livestock), which gathers and publishes wine industry statistics, unwittingly acted as a catalyst: for a wine to be labelled Carménère, it decreed that the entire vineyard had to be registered as planted with the variety. That decision, along with the enthusiasm of the wineries, led to a rapid expansion of the grape. The number of hectares planted to Carménère increased rapidly, peaking in 2014 with a record planting of 13,750 hectares (almost 34,000 acres), a number that would later stabilize at the current figure of 10,332 hectares (around 25,500 acres) in 2021. This means that today, old-vines Chilean Carménère, some planted as far back as 80 years ago, sit side by side with new vines in the same regions – with a handful still labelled Merlot!

In the process, Carménère rose from near worldwide oblivion following the phylloxera crisis that swept through the Médoc to representing a country on the global stage: Carménère became synonymous with Chile.

Next time, in the third part of this overview of Carménère, we’ll look a a few fun fact of this interesting grape that is now synonymous with Chile.

Behind the Cork™ - Art of Earth Chardonnay by Mack & Schuhle

2022 Art of Earth Chardonnay by Mack & Schühle ($11.99)

One of the largest and most important viticultural groups in the world, the Mack & Schühle organization includes 29 cooperatives and around 5,000 winegrowers, managing more than 60,000 acres of vineyard plantings located throughout the top growing regions of Mendoza and San Juan in Argentina.

Art of Earth organic wines are true to their origins and winemaking traditions without the use of pesticides or herbicides. This Art of Earth Chardonnay comes from Mendoza Argentina. The organic vineyards are located at 2300 to 2600 feet in elevation. The presence of the Andes Mountains, which act as a barrier to the humid winds of the Pacific, along with the distance to the Atlantic Ocean, generating ideal conditions for the cultivation of vines.

This Art of Earth Chardonnay is produced with 100% Chardonnay grapes that are both fermented and undergo malolactic conversion in stainless steel tanks - it sees no oak aging. It is pale gold in color with subtle aromas of lemon, lime and tropical fruits. On the palate, this medium-bodied Chardonnay has bright flavors of citrus, yellow apple and pear with refreshing acidity on the finish.

This Mack & Schühle Art of Earth Organic Chardonnay is available throughout most of the U.S. and, at $11.99, is a great value as this week’s Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week. Cheers!

Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Imported by Mack & Schühle

A Brief History of the Wine Grape Carménère

Thanks to the Wines of Chile, a non-profit, private organization of Chilean wine producers dedicated to promoting the quality and image of Chilean wines, here is a brief history of the Carménère (kar-men-nair) grape.

In 1994, fewer than 10 hectares (less than 25 acres) of Carménère remained in Médoc, Bordeaux, a region where it had been as important as Cabernet Franc in the 19th century. Outside the august circles of ampelographic experts (those involved in the science concerned with the identification and classification of grapevines), few knew it even existed. The aforementioned year turned out to be important: it saw a visit to Chile by French ampelographer Jean-Michel Boursiquot from the École Nationale Supérieure Agronomique de Montpellier for a viticultural congress in Santiago. On a tour of the Viña Carmen vineyard in Alto Jahuel, Maipo, Boursiquot identified Carménère vines that had up until then been mistaken for Merlot.

Three years earlier, another French expert had also expressed doubts about Chilean Merlot, noting that some vineyards were ripening three weeks later than they ought, and the plants turned a distinctive crimson red in the fall. But it wasn’t until Boursiquot’s discovery that Carménère began to be distinguished properly.

Known as Carménère in Médoc, a name derived from the French carmin (crimson), the variety has also borne the names Grande Vidure, Carmenelle, Cabernelle, Grant Carmenet, Carbouet and Cabernet Gernischt (used exclusively in China). News of its resurrection in the vineyards of Chile caused a stir across the winemaking world and marked the beginning of a revival of a grape previously thought to be almost extinct.

The Chilean wine industry got to work and started to assess the variety’s potential. According to a paper on the history of Carménère published by Philippo Pszczólkowski at the Universidad de Talca, an estimated one-third of what had been thought to be Merlot in 1994 (about 3,500 out of 10,000 hectares) was actually Carménère, meaning that in good conscience it could no longer be labelled Merlot. So, what was to be done? We’ll look into that next time. Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ - All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc - A Treat from Flora Springs

2021 Flora Springs Napa Valley All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc ($75)

Flora Springs has been producing one-of-a-kind Halloween-themed labels for quite some time and this year's All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc is a limited-production wine that is a perfect sip as the changing weather creeps in, from Halloween movie marathons to autumn-inspired dinner parties.

This year, Flora Springs General Manager Nat Komes, the creative spirit behind this annual endeavor, worked with comic book illustrator, graphic novelist and digital comics pioneer, Steve Ellis, to develop this years’ label.

This wine is produced from 100% Cabernet Franc that was aged 18 months in French oak barrels. And it is special - only 350 cases of this wine were produced.

This Flora Spring Napa Valley All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc is deep purple in color with aromas of rich dark fruit and a hint of jelly bean. On the palate, this full-bodied wine has delicious black berry and black cherry flavors along with ripe currant. The oak aging adds some subtle touches of brown sugar and vanilla. This wine is an interesting combination of being full-bodied yet delicate. It finishes beautifully -- long and super smooth.

Treat yourself this Halloween, or any time this Fall, with this delicious Flora Spring Napa Valley All Hallows’ Eve Cabernet Franc. It’s an amazing wine that is this week’s Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week! Cheers!

Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Sample Provided by Flora Springs via Forte Mare

Ever Wonder Why Some Wines Have Tiny Bubbles in Them?

Occasionally, when opening a bottle of still white wine and pouring it into a glass, you may see some tiny bubbles in the wine. And, if you use a bottle stopper and pump to extract the air in the bottle, you may see bubbles coming up through the wine. So, what exactly causes this phenomenon and should you be concerned?

The bubbles actually come from small amounts to carbon dioxide (CO2). This is the gas used to carbonate your favorite soft drinks and appears in beer and sparkling wine. It is a natural product of the wine fermentation process. Usually, all the CO2 escapes from the wine during processing, but it’s possible that very small amounts remain trapped in the wine prior to bottling. This is especially true of wines that quickly go from fermentation to the bottle (i.e., “young wines”).

Carbon dioxide is also a natural preservative for wine. So, winemakers may actually add a small amount of carbon dioxide to prevent a wine from oxidizing (i.e., absorbing oxygen).

Finally, it’s also possible that the wine has continued to ferment in the bottle, thus trapping the CO2 in the wine. This is unlikely, but if your wine also has some sediment and/or appears hazy, the bubbles would be due to this post-bottling mini-fermentation.

The bottom-line is that a few fine bubbles in a wine are totally harmless. Simply the act of pouring the wine into a glass should free-up these bubbles or, if you give the glass a swirl, the bubbles should quickly disappear. But, the bubbles don’t mean the wine has gone bad; it’s nothing that can harm you. Cheers!