New in this month is our Chilean collection of wines including the ever popular Los Vascos wines from Baron de Rothchild (Lafite), and the 2007 vintage of Encierra as well as Amancaya Gran Reserva 2007 the flagship wine from the exciting Amancaya winery in Mendoza, a joint venture between the Rothschild’s of Lafite and Nicolas Catena - all are delicious wines and come highly recommended.  Click on the links to our Bon Coeur Fine Wines online wine website to buy these wines.

AMANCAYA
Flagship wine from the exciting Amancaya winery in Mendoza, Argentina. This joint venture between the Rothschild’s of Lafite and Nicolas Catena.  The wine expresses the best of both worlds- Argentinean purity of fruit and concentration and the expertise of the finest winemakers in Bordeaux. A truly excellent blend of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Complex nose offers currant, graphite, tobacco, liquorice, cedar flavours. It’s finely balance with 12 months in French oak. Claret in style but with an extra dimension and charming velvety texture. 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Merlot.

Amancaya Gran Reserva 2007                                                   £115 ex vat per 12 bottle case
Complex nose offers currant, graphite, tobacco, liquorice, cedar flavours. It’s finely balance with 12 months in French oak. Claret in style but with an extra dimension and charming velvety texture. 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Merlot.

Cheapest price we can find this on the market is £135 ex vat per case. It’s becoming like gold dust – Our allocation is only 50 cases

LOS VASCOS
Chateau Lafite’s Chilean property and very popular with all our customers.

White Wines

Los Vascos Chardonnay 2008                                                     £81.60 ex vat per 12 bottle case
This vintage has a brilliant and clear colour with golden reflections. It has an explosive nose of melon, grapefruit and exotic fruit coupled with the typical Chardonnay note of hazelnut. In the mouth, it is rich, fresh and pleasantly fruity with good structure and a long finish.

Los Vascos Sauvignon Blanc 2009                                              £81.60 ex vat per 12 bottle case
Light yellow robe with beautiful green sparks. The nose shows the traditional ‘wild’ and expressive aromas of Sauvignon Blanc: boxwood and shrub followed by notes of chives and fruit such as pineapple, lime, green apple and white peach. The mouth is fresh, juicy and balanced. Good persistence. The grapes from Casablanca and Leyda bring in a fruity and mineral touch, while those from the Andean foothills contribute with volume and a creamy texture

Rosé Wines

Los Vascos Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé 2009                        £71.38 ex vat per 12 bottle case
A good year overall in terms of climatic conditions despite the dry spring and summer. Optimum ripening led to a very good rosé. Bright, light red robe. Intense red fruit aromas: strawberries, raspberries and cherries. Refreshing, lively and juicy mouth. Aromatic, balanced and good persistence

 
Red Wines

In Chile, 2007 was generally within the normal weather parameters, although at the beginning of summer there were some extremely hot days but these were controlled by focused irrigations and precise and timely canopy management. On top of this, temperatures became more moderate at the time of the harvest which permitted an excellent and healthy ripeness.
Los Vascos Cabernet Sauvignon 2007                                   £81.60 ex vat per 12 bottle case
Brilliant red ruby colour. Pleasant mature fruit such as red cherries, raspberries and plums. Notes of sarsaparilla and gooseberry jam, glazed dry fruit, red fruit in syrup and white chocolate. Spices of black pepper, nutmeg, bay leaves, mint and cloves. Sweet, round, vigorous and elegant tannins. Good acidity, with character. Simply delicious

Los Vascos Gran Reserva 2007                                                 £102.02 ex vat per 12 bottle case
The colour is brilliant red ruby. The nose explodes with fruit: black cherry and blackcurrant (cabernet), strawberry (malbec), raspberry (syrah), and plum with light touches of bay leaf and black pepper (carmenère). The oak is a delicious complement adding cinnamon, vanilla, chocolate and tobacco. It is creamy, intense, and fresh, with balanced acidity, good structure, finishing with a great expression of fruit marked by raspberries and sweet cherries, with little touches of liquorice. The wine is absorbing and harmonious, intensely delicious and entertaining

Le Dix de Los Vascos 2007                                                         £120 ex vat per 6 bottle case
Le Dix 2007 has a deep red garnet colour. The powerful nose develops aromas of very ripe black fruit and wild cherries with notes of cedar, laurel, and licorice. The oak is pleasantly integrated thus complementing the enjoyable aromas of toasted coffee, vanilla, tobacco and cinnamon. The Syrah adds nuances of violets and raspberries. In the mouth, it is round, dense, fresh and fruity. Even though the wine is concentrated, Le Dix remains very balanced and elegant improving the freshness and length with rich but ripe and soft tannins. It finishes with a strong taste of cherry and a light bitterness of walnut peel typical of great Cabernets. The Carmenère adds enjoyable touches of pepper. To drink from 2009 but with very good ageing potential. A very good vintage! Our Allocation is only 30 cases

Encierra ‘Vineyard Reserve’ 2007                                             £132.66 ex vat per 12 bottles
A wine that we honestly believe is worth £20 a bottle so much so that we ship about 10% of the production. I have included Derek Smedley’s tasting notes. Please note that he has given this wine a whopping 95 points. It’s Cabernet dominated (60%) with an excellent backbone of Syrah (35%) but has 3% Camenere and 2% Petit Verdot that gives the wine extra complexity. It can be drunk now but no hurry. They are basically surrounded by Chateau Lafite Chilean property Los Vascos. We believe it’s almost as good as Almaviva (the partnership of Bordeaux first-growth Chateau Mouton-Rothschild and Concha y Toro) which  Berry Bros sell at £43 per bottle

“There is a complex mix of rich black fruits showing on the nose, blackcurrant very prominent with damson and black cherry backing it. The fruit on the palate feels ripe ensuring richness and sweetness. The rounded tannins add to the fleshiness of the black fruit mix. Towards the back some strawberry and mulberry are in evidence giving some freshness but then dark chocolate lurks behind enriching the finish” Derek Smedley 95/100 points Drink 2009-2018

With the nights drawing in it’s that time of year when a good, full bodied red wine or a nip of Sloe Gin is just what the doctor ordered.

We have a great selection of red wines that will pair well with a hearty casserole and other seasonal dishes that are customary at this time of year in the run up to Christmas. 

One of the most popular wines of the moment is the ‘Encierra Vineyard Reserve 2005′ from Chile. This is a lovely rich style that is full in body and has layers of dark fruit flavours with subtle notes of spice on the long, smooth finish.

Chile has been producing some outstanding wines in recent years (more…)