From our winemaker Marcelo Papa

Springtime in Santiago

Tuesday, 1 February 2011

As 2011 gets well under way, here in Chile, we are enjoying some great warm weather. This is an important time of year for vine growth and the sunshine is vital to ensure the fruit is as robust and high quality as possible for our 2011 vintage. To allow the grapes to develop to the final stage of phenolic ripeness, we hope for dry days and cool nights.

We will begin harvest in late March, so the team and myself are currently gearing up for a busy time in the winemaking calendar. As always, irrigation is key to achieving a successful yield, and I have monitored all of our vineyards closely over the past month to ensure that the vines are getting the optimum levels of water.

2011 is looking like it will be another great vintage for us and we plan to add some exciting new releases to the Casillero del Diablo range this year. First up, is the new sparkling Brut Chardonnay, made with 100% Chardonnay fruit from the Limari Valley appellation. This region enjoys the cold influence from the South Pacific Ocean, very little rainfall and soil rich in minerals, which provide ideal conditions for fresh and crisp white wines. Our Fruit-forward sparkling wine is my top tip for parties in 2011! Stay tuned for details of other new releases.

My trip to the UK

Tuesday, 2 November 2010

Summer is just around the corner here in the vineyards of Casillero del Diablo and there is a real sense of optimism in the air following a turbulent year in Chile’s history.

It has been very busy time for me as I recently returned home from a very successful trip to the UK. I had the opportunity to speak to lots of UK wine lovers about what they are enjoying drinking at the moment. Listening to this feedback is essential for winemakers like myself when I’m creating Diablo wines here in Chile for sale in the UK.

The first stop on my travels was the Tesco Wine Club Fair in Bristol. It was a wonderful event and I hosted a number of workshops on what to look for when tasting wine as well as some of those all important food pairings. I think it is really important to experiment with wine and food matching, because even after all these years as a winemaker, I’m still discovering new matches.

It was then off to London for a few days of media interviews before I was on the road again heading to Manchester for the annual Diablo Food and Wine matching evening in the Second Floor restaurant at Harvey Nichols. Over 80 people attended the event, hosted by wine expert Peter Richards and myself, and we had a great evening matching some excellently crafted dishes to the Diablo range.

My favourite of the night was the 2009 Casillero del Diablo Carmenere matched to a lightly spiced duck dish. I find people often opt for beer when choosing what to drink with spicy food but this iconic grape variety from Chile is a surprise hit as its smooth, spicy characteristics really complement the spices in the dish.

After a fun-packed evening in Manchester it was then off back to London for a second night with an audience of 100 and another delicious dinner - I certainly eat well when I visit the UK. My favourite dish from the Harvey Nichols Knightsbridge evening was the creamy Wild Mushroom Risotto, which paired perfectly with the 2009 Casillero del Diablo Casablanca Chardonnay. This crisp Chardonnay is packed with tropical fruit flavours and has only hints of vanilla that really compliments the richness of the dish.

The following morning it was straight to the airport and back to Chile but during my brief visit I hope I managed to encourage a few more people to become more adventurous with their wine selections and not be scared of having a go at food and wine matching.

As always my trip to the UK was too short but hopefully I will be back soon to meet more British fans of Chilean wine and continue to spread the word about Diablo.