D3 Chile & Argentina

Question 1

Features of Chile?

Answer 1

Atacama Dessert - North
Andes Mountains - East
Pacific Ocean - West
Patagonia Glaciers - South

Fairly consistent climate in spite of very wide latitude range

Warm Mediterranean climate

Lot latitude = intense sunlight

Humboldt Current - cooling from Antarctica

Question 2

Weather System Affecting Chile?

Answer 2

El Nino - very high rainfall every 2-10 years

La Nina - low rainfall and drought

Question 3

Vineyard risks in Chile?

Answer 3

Fungal disease in wetter areas

Forest fires in drier areas

Question 4

Mechanisation in Chile?

Answer 4

Increasing, but still hand harvested a lot of the time

Question 5

Indigenous Bulk Grape in Chile?

Answer 5

Pais, though significantly less planted now

Some better examples now grown in South (Bio Bio, Maule, Itata)

Question 6

Chilean Grapes?

Answer 6

Cabernet Sauvignon
Merlot
Carmenere
Syrah

Sauvignon Blanc

Chardonnay

Question 7

Location in Chile for bulk wines?

Answer 7

Central Valley

Question 8

Chile East to West Zones?

Answer 8

Costa
Entre Cordilleras
Andes

Question 9

Chilean DO Grape Requirements?

Answer 9

Minimum 75% for domestic, 85% of variety for EU export

Minimum 11.5% ABV

Question 10

Chile - Superior, Reserva, Reserva Especial, Reserva Privada, Gran Reserva?

Answer 10

Min. 12% for Reserva (Especial)
Min 12.5% Reserva Privada & Gran Reserva, also 6 months minimum oak ageing
Otherwise doesn’t mean a lot

Question 11

Coquimbo Sub-Regions?

Answer 11

Elqui
Limari
Choapa

Question 12

Coquimbo Features?

Answer 12

Low Latitude so very hot and intense sunlight
Mountain and ocean cooling critical
Humboldt provides cooling fogs, but very little rainfall
Edge of Atacama desert, and reduced Andean snowfall means even less access to irrigation water

Question 13

Elqui Features & Grapes?

Answer 13

Elqui River
High altitude

Syrah
Sauvignon Bla

Question 14

Limari Features & Grapes?

Answer 14

Ocean cooling in West, Andean cooling and high altitude in East

Chardonnay
Syrah

Question 15

Aconcagua Sub-Regions?

Answer 15

Aconcagua Valley
San Antonio
Casablanca Valley

Question 16

Aconcagua Features & Grapes?

Answer 16

Most pronounced effect of East to West zoning

Central part of valley is warm and dry, growing Cabernet and Merlot, and Camenere and Syrah to a lesser extent

Valley sides and East - lower alcohol, higher acid

Costa - Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir & Syrah to lesser extent

Question 17

Casablanca Valley Features & Grapes?

Answer 17

Very cool area - little protection from Pacific
Spring frosts acute risk
Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah

Question 18

San Antonio Features & Grapes?

Answer 18

Heavy ocean influence, less as moving East

Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah

Question 19

Central Valley Sub-Regions?

Answer 19

Maipo Valley
Rapel Valley > Cachapoal Valley & Colchagua Valley
Curico Valley
Maule Valley

Question 20

Maipo Valley Features & Grapes?

Answer 20

Sheltered from maritime influence, so warm and dry
Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, Syrah
Bulk Merlot

Question 21

Rapel Valley (Cachapoal & Colchagua) Features & Grapes?

Answer 21

Cachapoal - lots of bulk wines on dry valley floor
Peumo - concentrated high quality Carmenere, cooling winds funnelled along Cachapoal river from Pacific without frost risk; Cabernet also
Colchagua - lots of bulk wines on dry valley floor
Cooler less fertile parts of Colchagua making outstanding wines from Cabernet, Syrah and Carmenere
Costa part of Colchagua ideal for Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir

Question 22

Curico Valley Features & Grapes?

Answer 22

High volume wines of Cab, Merlot, SB, Chardonnay

Question 23

Maule Valley Features & Grapes?

Answer 23

High volume wines of Pais

Some rare instances of old vine high quality Pais

Question 24

Itata Valley Grapes?

Answer 24

Cheap blending grapes

However, old vine Pais, Muscat of Alexandria & Cinsault

Question 25

Southern Region Sub-Regions?

Answer 25

Itata Valley Bio Bio Valley Malleco Valley

Question 26

Bio Bio Valley Grapes?

Answer 26

Old vines of Pais Riesling, Gewurz, SB PN, Chardonnay

Question 27

Argentina Altitudes?

Answer 27

3300m in Salta 500m lowest 1,000+m typical; Where latitude is lower (Northerly) there must be elevation to offer cooling Altitude = high diurnal range (as much as 20 Celsius swing); more intense sunlight and UV = more tannins and anthocyanins

Question 28

Argentina Climate & Features?

Answer 28

Warm Continental generally Andes casts a rain shadow, so very dry and requires irrigation Dry air and winds alleviates disease pressure Zonda wind, hot dry and powerful in spring/summer, can lowers humidity and creates water stress

Question 29

Vineyard Risks in Argentina?

Answer 29

``` Wind damage from the zonda Hail storms (netting is expensive) Spring frosts in flat areas El Nino hailstorms and very high rainfall Nematodes Relatively low disease risk otherwise ```

Question 30

Soils in Argentina?

Answer 30

Higher Altitude = calcareous Middle Altitude - Gravel, sand, silt Lower Altitude - loamy-clay (vigorous)

Question 31

Argentina Irrigation?

Answer 31

Widespread use of flood | Less commonly drip

Question 32

Argentina Vine Training?

Answer 32

Historically the use or pergolas (parral) especially for Whites that need shade e.g. Torrontes or high yield varieties Increasingly VSP

Question 33

Argentina Harvesting?

Answer 33

Historically by hand, increasingly mechanised

Question 34

Bonarda?

Answer 34

``` Mostly grown around San Juan Simpler wines Med(+) acidity, medium tannins and alcohol Red and black fruit Doesn't take oak well ```

Question 35

3 Layers of Argentina GI?

Answer 35

IP - very wide areas IG - of a certain quality, from a certain place DOC - only Lujan de Cuyo and San Rafael, both in Mendoza

Question 36

Argentina - labelling for variety and vintage?

Answer 36

Minimum 85% respectively

Question 37

Argentina - Reserva vs Gran Reserva?

Answer 37

Reserva - minimum 6 (whites) or 12 (reds) months oak maturation Gran Reserva - minimum 12 (whites) or 24 (reds) months oak maturation

Question 38

Cuyo?

Answer 38

Mendoza, San Juan and La Rioja

Question 39

5 parts of Mendoza?

Answer 39

Northern - inexpensive simple wines Eastern - inexpensive simple wines Central > Lujan de Cuyo (~1000m), Maipu (600-900m, old vines) Uco Valley - Tunuyan River, 850-1,500m Southern > San Rafael 450-850m but higher latitude/cooler; lesser reputation but capable of very good wines, including Chenin Blanc

Question 40

San Juan?

Answer 40

Mostly inexpensive | Pedernal valley near Mendoza (1250-1500m) producing excellent Syrah, Malbec, Bonarda though

Question 41

La Rioja?

Answer 41

Inexpensive wines mostly Co-op

Question 42

Salta?

Answer 42

Calchaqui River 1500-3300m Cafayate for Torrontes

Question 43

Patagonia?

Answer 43

Neuquen winds Flat, relatively low elevation High latitude so naturally cool Growing cooler-climate grapes such as Riesling, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, alongside Chardonnay, Merlot, Semillon