William Cole Columbine Reserve Pinot Noir 2013
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James
Suckling
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James Suckling
A light, fresh and clean pinot noir with sliced berry and orange peel character. Medium body, bright finish.
William Cole winery is located deep within Chile’s prestigious Casablanca Valley, the area often referred to as “Chile’s Burgundy.” This cool climate vineyard near the coast is comprised of over 129 contiguous hectares and provides a long, warm growing season with cool nights to develop excellent fruit acidity. Owned by the Martin Weinstein family, the winery specializes in cool climate varieties, producing wines that are crisp, clean and complex. The winery’s primary line is Albamar, which pays homage to the Casablanca Valley’s foggy sunrise (“alba” means sunrise) and the cooling breezes of the ocean (“mar” means ocean).
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
A region that has become synonymous with some of the best whites of Chile, the Casablanca Valley is full of dozens of bodegas who either grow fruit here or come from outside to source from local growers for their own white wine programs. The valley runs from east to west, which means that its westernmost vineyards receive the most cooling influence from the reliable afternoon sea breezes. The soils also tend to be heavier in clay in the west, whereas the eastern end of the valley is warmer and its soils are predominantly granitic. Sauvignon blanc thrives here, Chardonnay does well and Pinot noir is not uncommon.