2021 De Martino, La Blanca, Semillón, Maipo Valley, Chile
Critics reviews
The 2021 Single Vineyard Semillón La Blanca was produced with grapes from Isla de Maipo, from vines planted in 1979. The full clusters were pressed and the juice put to ferment in well-seasoned, neutral oak barrels with indigenous yeasts and matured in a 2,500-liter foudre, including malolactic, for nine months. It has moderate ripeness, 13% alcohol and very good freshness. It's a little creamy, even though they shortened the time the wine spent in the foudre, trying to keep it more varietal and less oxidative. It has a sharp, austere and serious profile, textured and with aging potential. 2,528 bottles produced. It was bottled in June 2022.
Drink 2023-2028
Luis Gutiérrez, Wine Advocate (April 2023)
Hazelnuts, pears, waxed lemons and blanched almonds on the nose. Some white pepper and cloves. Medium to full body, with firm and compact layers and a lengthy, spicy finish. Drink now or hold.
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (April 2023)
The 2021 Sémillon Single Vineyard La Blanca was aged for 15 months in foudres and allowed to breathe freely until the 7th month. An intense yellow in the glass. The nose presents hints of green apple, honey, linden-blossom and a little wood. Creamy on the palate with refined, sharp acidity. The variety’s volume is underlined by the leverage in foudres but maintains its tension.
Drink 2023-2029
Joaquín Hidalgo, Vinous (March 2023)
About this WINE
De Martino
De Martino is one of the most progressive and exciting names on the Chilean wine scene, deservedly named Chilean Winery of the year in 2011. Through a network of intellectual partnerships and vineyard acquisition, it has quickly built up a reputation for organic viticulture of the highest quality, farming from over 350 different vineyards.
The corporate vision focuses on sustainability, terroir, and, by logical extension, excellence. By concentrating on the very best sites for the varieties in question, be they in Limari, Elqui or Maipo, and by the development of a world class winemaking team, De Martino now sits at the very top of the Chilean vinous hierarchy.
The Alto Piedras vineyards make up 5 hectares of the sub-Denominacion of the Isla de Maipo, a de facto island as the vines are surrounded by two branches of the Maipo River. Two other self-evident truths are located in the nomenclature; firstly that the terrain is rocky, volcanic gravel to be precise and secondly that the vines are quite high up. Chile’s indigenous grape, Carmenère, is here aged for 18 months in new French oak.
Maipo
Maipo Valley, the northernmost within Central Valley, is one of Chile's most prominent wine regions. It is located east of San Antonio and Casablanca Valley and north of Rapel Valley, and is nestled between two mountain ranges, the Andes and the Coastal Mountains, with Chile's capital city, Santiago, sitting in the middle.
Maipo is renown for its exceptional Cabernet Sauvignon, ripe, subtle, spicy and complex with its signature, powerful eucalyptus and blackcurrant flavours. It amounts for over 60% of the regions 10,000ha. Merlot, Chardonnay and Carmenere are also important.
Maipo plays host to several major, quality Chilean wine companies, including Almaviva, Concha y Toro, William Fevre, Santa Rita, De Martino
Sémillon
The main grape for Sauternes and particularly successfully grown in Australia's Hunter Valley. Hunter Valley Sémillon is one of Australia’s iconic and unique wines, totally unlike any wine produced elsewhere in the world from the same grape variety.
In youth the wines are quite citrusy and fresh, but are generally perceived to gain hugely in complexity as they age and are deemed to be best drunk when at least 5 years old, frequently lasting for 10 or more years. Unusually for Australia, the alcohol levels rarely exceed 11.5%.
In Bordeaux it is the most widely planted white grape and is blended with Sauvignon Blanc to produce the great long-lived dry whites of Graves as well as the great sweet wines of Sauternes. It is high in alcohol and extract and relatively low in aroma and acidity. Its thin skin makes it very susceptible to botrytis which is prerequisite for the making of Sauternes. It responds well to oak ageing and, while having a lightly lemony aroma when young develops lanolin flavours which some describe as "waxy", as well as a rich, creamy, intense, texture and a deep golden colour.
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Description
There is a very limited amount of Semillon growing in Chile, and so this is a real treat for the senses! On the nose, an abundance of white flowers, apricots and malted milk biscuits. The palate is juicy with aromatic preserved lemon, fresh acidic lime and a touch of bitter grapefruit. Already interesting, the ageing potential here will no doubt bring honey and nut aromas which will be even more delicious.
Drink 2023 – 2035
Amy Johnson, Account Manager, Berry Bros. & Rudd (November 2023)
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