MR BOND would not look out of place, in his tuxedo, sipping from a glass in Casa Lapostolle's new winery in Colchagua Valley, Chile.
If he had any sense, he wouldn't be drinking his customary "shaken not stirred" vodka martini as an aperitif, but a glass of sauvignon blanc instead.
I visited the new winery for dinner and tasted a selection of Casa Lapostolle wines, during a visit to Chile last month. It is a stunning building, modern but organic, and sympathetic to its surrounds. Partially sunk into the granite bedrock of the Andes foothills, it is on six levels and uses gravity to allow the wine to flow downwards, eliminating the need for pumping.
Casa Lapostolle was established in 1994 by the Marnier-Lapostolle family, of Grand Marnier fame. The French influence extends to the wines, with Michel Rolland as the consulting winemaker. At the top end of the wines is the blend Clos Apalta, which is produced at the new winery.
Another wine, BOROBO, is just being launched into the UK market, but with a price tag of around £50, only small quantities will be available. A blend of Bordeaux, Rhone and Burgundy varietals, it takes its name from the famous French regions, BO' for Bordeaux, RO' for Rhone and BO' for Bourgogne. Whatever, it is supremely juicy!
In the meantime, you may wish to try the following which I marked with an asterisk in my wine notes.
Casa Lapostolle Sauvignon Blanc 2005, from vineyards in the Rapel Valley, is ideally suited as an accompaniment to seafood. With ten per cent semillon in the blend, it is full, crisp and dry. Mineral notes in the wine are pronounced, with subtle tropical fruit flavours, melon, lemon and spicy undertones.
Talking of wines that cry-out to be paired with food, I can think of no better wine to go with a juicy steak than Casa Lapostolle's mighty Cuve Alexandre Syrah 2003. This is a huge wine, but not in an overpowering way.
As you'd expect of the variety, it is very fiery, black pepper and spice, with aromas of smoky coffee. Smooth on the palate, despite all the fire and spice, there are rich dark fruit flavours with notes of chocolate, liquorice and supple tannins.
More widely available than the syrah is Casa Lapostolle Cuve Alexandre Merlot 2004. Another complex mouthful of warm, enticing, damson, cassis and blackberry fruit with notes of chocolate and a little perfume from the 15 per cent carmenere in the blend. The bottle will be empty before you know it.
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