On Saturday February 27, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake rocked Chile leaving 800 dead and wiping out 125 million liters or 12.5% of Chile’s respected wine industry (mostly cabernet) with estimates of a 250 million dollar loss. Most of the 288,000 acres affected were up and down the wine making corridor between the capital of Santiago in the north to near the epicenter at Concepcion, Chile’s 2nd largest city, in the south. Damage was extensive to the infrastructure of the vineyards and wineries leaving “millions of liters” of barreled wine on the floor as the country prepared for the new harvest.
By some miracle of nature, the actual grape vines had not been affected and picking and de-stemming is moving forward as the 5th largest importer of wine in the world gets back to making great reds at value prices, according to the Chilean Association of Wineries.
“Work has been re-established and bottle lines are in generally good condition,” said Rene Marino, President of the organization. Meanwhile Argentina, separated from Chile by the Andes Mountains, escaped the shock.
Chile’s leading winery, Casa Lapostolle is shown de-stemming its Merlot harvest after the country’s devastating earthquake of February 27th Jim Barrasso, the affable owner of Firefly Grill and Wine Bar in Encinitas and a firm believer in the Chilean-Argentinian wine story, was set to fly into Santiago Chile, then on to Argentina, for the vineyard tour of a lifetime. 24 hours before the earthquake struck I shook his hand and wished him the best on his trip and requested a story on his travels, never dreaming of what was to happen.
“We found out about it when we got the call that all flights were cancelled into Chile. Scheduling was adjusted so that we were able to get into Santiago’s airport 10 days later. It was still heavily damaged and operating out of tents,” he recalled. A connector flight to Argentina was set up a day later and they were finally in the biggest producer of wine in South America and the maker of the now-famous Malbec wines.
“I always wanted to go there and had to scramble to get winery visits adjusted for private tours and tastings,” he told me. “The winemakers and owners were even more hospitable after the ordeal of the earthquake. We tasted lots of Malbec, the most popular wine in Argentina’s biggest wine district, Mendoza.
Jim Barrasso of Firefly in Encinitas, with Denise Cerelli, tastes Argentina Wines at Catena Zapata with winemaker Celeste Pesce, shown on the right.
The altitude averages 5 to 7,000 feet, which makes Malbec thrive,” he pointed out. He named Catena Zapata as one of his favorites, with its widespread, highly focused source vineyards and over a century of family experience. I recently tasted the 2006 Catena Cabernet and found it to be an aromatic, taste-filled berry and spice red, right up there with the premium cabs of Chile. You can learn more about Catena by accessing www.catenawines.com. For the latest on Chile’s recovery, access www.winesofchile.org.
California Wine Festival comes to Dana Point
This Doheny State Beach located wine festival, planned for Saturday April 24 from 1 to 4pm is a hybrid to the celebrated California Wine Festival in Santa Barbara that will happen Thursday July 15 through Saturday July 17th. The Dana Point event also has Thursday and Friday parts to it. A Taste the Future with sustainable seafood and wine tasting happens on Thursday evening April 22 at the Ritz-Carlton Resort Hotel; and a Rare and Reserve Tasting is Friday evening April 23 with elegant food pairings at the Dana Point Yacht Club. Both are from 6:30 to 9pm. Saturday’s Doheny Beachside Wine Festival features unlimited tasting of fine wine and foods plus regional craft brews. The event is on a grassy area with lots of shade.
You can combine events and get entrance privileges for discount pricing or order an “All Gold VIP Pass” so you don’t miss anything. Call for full details at 800-595-4849 or check it out at www.californiawinefestival.com.
Wine Bytes
The Zinfandel Associates and Producers ( ZAP) has a Zin Tasting event at the Island Hotel in Newport Beach Sun. Apr. 18 from 4 to 7pm. Some 40 wineries, many from Sonoma and Paso Robles, will be pouring. A culinary competition will offer samples for all guests. Tickets are $49. ea. and can be obtained at www.zinfandel.org or call 530-274-4900.
R&R Wine Marketing presents a Spring Portfolio Tasting Mon. Apr. 19 from 6 to 8pm at Loungesix on the Hotel Solamar Rooftop Terrace, downtown San Diego. Meet winemakers and owners, taste current release wines and sample Hors d’oeuvres. $20. entrance fee. RSVP at 619-221-8024.
Bordeaux style Lucas & Lewellen wines are the featured star wines at a special dinner at Thee Bungalow in Pt. Loma Wed. Apr. 12 at 6:30pm. Owner Louis Lucas will be there. 5 course meal and wines for $59.95. Reservations 619-224-2884.
Lewis Cellars wines are spotlighted in a special wine dinner at Amaya in the Grand Del Mar Resort Fri. Apr. 23 from 5:30 to 10pm. Dennis Bell from Lewis will present the wines. Amaya chef Camron Woods has prepared an eventful 4 course menu to match the wines. $70. pp. Call 858-314-1988 for an RSVP.
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