2013 Viña Koyle, Costa Sauvignon Blanc, Paredones, Colchagua Costa, Chile

Vina Koyle

Viña Koyle was founded in 2006 by Alfonso Undurraga Mackenna, former CEO of Viñas Undurraga,  and his three sons and daughter at Los Lingues in the high Colchagua valley. This 60 hectare wine property has espoused organic and biodynamic principles from its inception.
 
Benefiting from five differing soils of volcanic origin, the property has taken great care to optimise the grape variety to soil type and vineyard microclimate.  The wines are all fermented without excessive extraction to allow the fruit to be expressive and the oak regime is designed to complement rather than overwhelm the nose and palate.

Colchagua Valley

The Colchagua Valley is one of Chile’s most renowned wine regions for producing high-quality red wines. The winemaking is deeply rooted in tradition and innovation, making it a dynamic and exciting region for wine enthusiasts.

The Mediterranean climate has warm, dry summers and cooling influences from the Pacific Ocean and the Andes Mountains. This climate and well-drained soils provide excellent conditions for growing grape varieties, with a particular focus on red grapes.

The valley is famous for its red Bordeaux varietals, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Carménère. These grapes thrive in the region’s terroir and result in wines with rich flavours, ripe fruit characteristics, and well-integrated tannins. Carménère, in particular, has found a unique home in Colchagua Valley, as it was rediscovered here after being thought extinct for a long time.

Colchagua Valley Winemakers follow traditional and modern winemaking techniques. Many vineyards are hand-harvested to ensure the selection of only the best grapes. Using stainless steel tanks and oak barrels for ageing allows winemakers to craft wines with complexity and balance.

The region’s wineries range from small family-owned estates to large and well-known producers. Each winery strives to showcase the unique terroir of Colchagua Valley in its wines, resulting in a diverse range of styles and expressions.

Sauvignon Blanc

An important white grape in Bordeaux and the Loire Valley that has now found fame in New Zealand and now Chile. It thrives on the gravelly soils of Bordeaux and is blended with Sémillon to produce fresh, dry, crisp  Bordeaux Blancs, as well as more prestigious Cru Classé White Graves.

It is also blended with Sémillon, though in lower proportions, to produce the great sweet wines of Sauternes. It performs well in the Loire Valley and particularly on the well-drained chalky soils found in Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, where it produces bone dry, highly aromatic, racy wines, with grassy and sometimes smoky, gunflint-like nuances.

In New Zealand, Cloudy Bay in the 1980s began producing stunning Sauvignon Blanc wines with extraordinarily intense nettly, gooseberry, and asparagus fruit, that set Marlborough firmly on the world wine map. Today many producers are rivalling Cloudy Bay in terms of quality and Sauvignon Blanc is now New Zealand`s trademark grape.

It is now grown very successfully in Chile producing wines that are almost halfway between the Loire and New Zealand in terms of fruit character. After several false starts, many South African producers are now producing very good quality, rounded fruit-driven Sauvignon Blancs.