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Vina Maitia "Aupa" Valle De Maule Pipeno 2016,  A Pais, Carignan Blend From Chile Is A Light, Fresh Red.

12/26/2017

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by Patrick Ogle

Vina Maitia Aupa Pipeño 2016, a pais, carignan blend from Chile, is bright, fresh and light. When I looked at it, sniffed  it I thought what I thought about the last pais grape wine I had--Beaujolais. But whenever you have a lighter wine, counoise or whatever? There is the Beaujolais crutch to fall back on. This ISN'T Beaujolais. This blend is its own wine.

I served this (first) a little cold. When you do that the fruit you expect is sort of underneath some it warmed to room temperature I got cherries and red berries and tartness. This is a wine that is hard to not like; it is light and refreshing and you can serve it with a little chill--or not. There is a tad of bitterness on the finish--an herbal flavor not far from anise with more green, leafy herbs lurking as well. This is a fruity light wine but is a long long way from the Beaujolais I imagined as I sniffed.

There are tannins here. They are not muscular or overwhelming but given the general lightness you certainly notice them. On the broad scale of wines the tannin here is what you'd call low BUT when the wine is light in other ways any tannin stands out. They add balance to this wine. There is also a brisk acidity here that gives this wine a lot of zip. You will want another glass on a hot day. Also, if you want to drink a red with a food you would usually have a white with? This might be a fit.

Pipenos are pais wines traditional to the south of Chile. The grape is the same that was called the Mission grape and also listan in the Canary Islands. This wine is dry farmed and comes from quite old vines; the pais vines top 100 years and
the carignan are over 70 years. They use natural yeast and this is partly made using carbonic maceration.

Add all the above up and then realize you can lay your hands on a bottle of this for less than $15--which is a steal for a wine this good.



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Bodegas Los Bermejos Lanzarote Listan Negro Rosado 2016, A Canary Island Rose With Character

8/24/2017

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by Patrick Ogle

Bodegas Los Bermejos Lanzarote Listan Negro Rosado 2016 is a rose from the Canary Islands with complexity and character.

My initial reaction was that there is something round about it in the mouth feel. But I have to admit? This was wrong. There is definitely more than enough acid to keep the wine from being flabby. That initial perception of "roundness" was probably detecting a certain unctuousness in the wine before the acidity became apparent. The wine has a bigger mouthfeel to me than some. It is different. There is something wild about this wine. I imagine an overgrown unkept secret vineyard next to an erupting volcano. This is just my imagination of course (although the soil is
certainly volcanic).
 
There are hints of light red berry and some bitterness as well. There are also tons of different floral and herbal notes to go with a red fruit tartiness that makes this a wine that you certainly can drink by itself on a warm afternoon but that will also work with a variety of foods--spicy and salty foods especially. Part of the minerality here is a bit salty. Don't serve this TOO cold so you can get at all of these.

I guarantee you will taste and sense other qualities than I do. This is a pretty complicated rose. I kept changing my mind about this wine, not about how good it was but about how it tasted, its characteristics.

Listan Negro is the red version of palomino (the grape not the horse). Palomino is used in the production of Sherry. Listan Negro is also the Mission grape of the New World. It is sometimes called pais, although I have read that the mission grape and pais are related but not necessarily the exact same thing. It isn't a common grape but it is common in the Canary Islands.

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Louis-Antoine Luyt's Pipeño, An Odd, Delicious Blast From The Past, Made From The Pais Grape

10/1/2015

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by Patrick Ogle

Louis-Antoine Luyt's Pipeño is an odd wine made from an old, oft-derided grape (pais). When you open it you will notice a cloudiness and maybe some detritus floating in the glass.The color, in most wines, might make you think something has gone wrong but here it is a sign that something has gone right.


I have read and heard comparisons to Beaujolais and there is, maybe, some of that in the wine--some of the more barnyardy versions. But this light red wine is its own thing. The pais grape is a hearty Spanish grape grown in the early colonial years at missions in California and throughout the Spanish New World. This wine is both something hip young wine drinkers will enjoy and a blast from the distant past.

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It definitely has a whiff of the gamay grape (the grape that makes Beaujolais). The first taste reminded me a little of cherry then the tannins hit. It has a dusty, earthy feel to it. There is a bitterness to the finish and, in fact, there are many unique, earthy tastes to this wine. There is almost something cider-like here. Those who feel all wines should taste like a fine Bordeaux will not like this; of course those people are usually quite dull (even if they are also quite rich). This is unique and rustic and hopefully it will catch on. Not every wine needs to be refined and crystal clear.

I'd been told the wine changes in interesting ways after opened so I let the bottle sit for 24 hours. It is true, as with many wines, the character of this one changed after being opened but in unique fashion. Any tannins are gone and the first sip made me think more of the fruit. It was, in some ways, a better wine after some air got to it--or perhaps not better but different. There is something that reminded me of the lambrusco grape for some reason (without the sparkle). It isn't expensive and comes in a liter bottle so buy a bottle to drink one night and another to decant!

The pais grape has been described as being the mission grape but I've also read it is a cousin of that grape. It may also just be the same grape that has adapted to where it is grown. This is a "terroir" driven wine; its qualities are determined by the conditions where it is grown. Luyt is from France but buys his grapes from small organic producers using native yeasts in fermentation. This is true Chilean wine. Find out more via Louis Dresser Selections.

$16-18
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    WINE!

    There are thousands of wine grapes and many places that grow great wines. Why not find out about some surprising wines from surprising places?

    NOTE-Until recently I did not capitalize the names of varietal grapes (as a matter of style) but for a variety of reasons as of February, 2018 we will capitalize but I am not going back and altering the previous style!!!


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