Perez Cruz Chaski Petit Verdot 2012
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Robert
Parker
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The 2012 Chaski Petit Verdot is sourced from 13-year-old vines planted in an old river bed, on alluvial soils from a stony part of their estate with 55% boulders and 10% to 20% clay that softens the powerful and structured Petit Verdot. In this warm vintage, the Petit Verdot achieved perfect ripening with a peak in temperatures during March (the highest temperatures are usually reached during January). This time it's 100% Petit Verdot; in other vintages it had small percentages of other grapes. The grapes were fermented in a tronconic stainless steel vat after a five day cold soak and completed malolactic fermentation in barrique (60% new), where it matured for 16 months. This does not have the roasted notes and the rustic, slightly harsh character often associated with the grape; this is milder, much more polished and elegant. It might even have some Mediterranean character, faintly balsamic with some notes of aromatic herbs. The palate is medium to full-bodied, intense, yes, but without the rusticity -- albeit with that classical roasted, tarry finish. The grape is like that, and this is a very gentle example, so for fans of the style.
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The Pérez Cruz family’s primary objective is to express their estate’s personality through wines with character and identity. The wines are 100% single-estate origin, which affords the winery total control of the outstanding fruit which arrives at full maturity and with uniform ripeness. French-trained winemaker German Lyon, assisted by the occasional consult from Álvaro Espinoza, one of the leading biodynamic experts in the country, takes a gentle and diligent approach to handling the fruit, which flows through the multi-level gravity-fed winery without pumps.
Here in the rolling foothills of the Andes Mountains, soils are deep, stony, and poor in nutrients. The Mediterranean-like climate offers dry and very sunny summers with vast swings between daytime and nighttime temperatures—the ideal combination for producing high-quality wines with ripe fruit and driving acidity. Rocky soils and a temperate microclimate create exceptional growing conditions. The cooling influence of the Andes mountain air mingles with mild Pacific Ocean breezes to create the conditions for slow ripening and long hang times, which lead to fresh, vibrant fruit flavors married to local aromatic herbs, mouthwatering natural acidity and polished tannins.
The winery was built of native types of wood with two barrel-shaped central naves, exterior arches that evoke the passing of wind through trees, and stone foundations that recall the structures the Incas left behind in the area. Its sustainable design incorporates a gravity-flow process and has a three-million-liter capacity. By taking advantage of the conditions below ground, temperature and humidity are controlled naturally in the barrel cellar, which has a capacity for 5,000 barrels.
One of the original Bordeaux varieties, Petit Verdot has a bold structure, color and aromas, which allow it to make a significant difference in Bordeaux Blends—even in modest amounts. While it isn’t planted in Bordeaux in great quantities anymore, its virtues are increasingly identified elsewhere. Somm Secret—Producing phenomenal single-varietal wines in hot and dry locations in the New World, Petit Verdot also finds a happy home in parts of Spain as well as in in Portugal’s Alentejo where it gracefully blends with the regions' indigenous varieties.
The Maipo Valley is Chile’s most famous wine region. Set in the country’s Central Valley, it is warm and quite dry, often necessitating the use of irrigation. Alluvial soils predominate but are supplemented with loam and clay.
The climate in Maipo is best-suited for ripe, full-bodied reds like Cabernet Sauvignon (the region’s most widely planted grape), Merlot, Syrah and Carmenère, a Bordeaux variety that has found a successful home in Chile.
White wines are also produced with great prosperity, especially near the cooler coast, include Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.