Tag Archives: Vina Maquis

Expensive wine 149: Vina Maquis Viola 2014

vina maquis viola
Vina Maquis Viola 2014/$49-$52

This Chilean carmenere blend is a stunning addition to the roster of the world’s great wines

One of these wines was impressive enough. Now, we have a second Chilean carmenere blend that left me, well, almost beyond words.

The Vina Maquis Viola 2014 ($50, sample, 13.5%) is a step up from the aformentioned Maquis Lien, which is impressive enough given how accomplished the Lien was. What’s even more impressive is that the Viola is a great wine, one that can stand with any of the world’s more famous and more pricey great wines. So yes, Napa cabernet sauvignon and red Bordeaux.

Or, as I wrote in my notes: “Damn.”

This is a layered and structured – almost subtle – carmenere blend, which isn’t easy to do. Carmenere’s story is here; it’s enough for our purposes to know that the grape makes rough, tannic, and bell pepper-ish wine without any trouble at all. So that this wine is this sophisticated speaks volumes about the quality of the grapes and the care taken with them.

Look for black berry fruit, spices and green herbs (and not bell pepper), and tremendously well-done tannins. The 15 percent cabernet franc in the blend adds structure and helps make the finish — well, finish longer and in a more interesting way.

Highly recommended; a holiday wine for anyone who wants to try a high-end red and doesn’t have preconceived notions about what those wines should taste like.

Imported by Global Vineyard Importers

Expensive wine 132: Vina Maquis Lien 2016

vina maquis lien
Vina Maquis Lien 2016/$30-$35

Chile’s Vina Maquis Leon red blend offers something different, but also accomplished

Sometimes, out of nowhere, a wine appears that makes even someone as cranky and as irritable and as worn out as the Wine Curmudgeon go: “Wow!”

The Vina Maquis Lien 2016 ($32, sample, 13.5%) is just that kind of wine.

It’s not cabernet sauvignon. It’s not from Bordeaux or California. And, as far as I can tell, it has never gotten 95 points from one of the wine magazines. It’s a red blend from Chile’s Colchagua Valley; this vintage has mostly carmenere, not an easy grape to work with, as well as cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, and a splash of syrah.

So, with that as the caveat for those of you who are looking for a more polished and Winestream-y sort of wine, this is an amazing effort – young and still a little rough around the edges, but something that will show depth and power as it ages. That the carmenere – which can turn any wine green and unpleasantly herbaceous – doesn’t get in the way speaks volumes about its quality.

Look for just-picked red fruit (berries more than cherries), a surprising freshness given this is as old as it is, and a long, almost woodsy finish. Highly recommended — just the kind of wine to give someone as a gift who wants to try something different.

Imported by Imported by Global Vineyard Importers