Values Reign in an Age of McWine
By CJ Katz - Publisher, Editor of Savour Life Magazine.
REGINA - For the family of Torreon de Paredes Estate Winery, concern about protecting the environment is a number one priority. “Trade barriers of the future will be related to the environment,” says Javier de Paredes, managing director. Two years ago, they put their money where their wine is concerned (and costs are huge to carry ISO status) and became one of the few wineries in Chile, and in fact around the world, to be ISO 14001 certified. “The term ‘organic’ still has a lot of grey zones but ISO certification has very clear cut guidelines,” he explains. Just last week the winery underwent its annual inspection. ISO inspectors came onto the winery and among other things interviewed every person at every level of production to inquire if they understood what ISO certification is about, their particular roles and how what they do impacts on the environment. Torreon de Paredes (Spanish meaning ?Tower of the Paredes family?) received another year of certification.
Concern for the environment and the small size of their winery is one reason why all the grapes of the one million bottles produce yearly are hand picked. “It’s much easier on the vines,” says Paredes. Mechanical harvesters, like the huge nets that rape the ocean floor for fish, swoop up everything in its path - leaves, nails and wire - not optimal ingredients for making world-class wines. Once the grapes have been picked (all of which come from the vineyard, none are outsourced), they are then hand selected and fed into the crusher.
The Torreon de Paredes Winery was established back in 1979 when Javier’s father, Amado, was reaching the autumn of his life. In his early 70’s he purchased 150 hectares of vineyards in and around Rengo, when Chile country was in terrible economic crisis. While other wineries were pulling out their vines and planting kiwis, Amado insisted on planting vitis vinifera vines. Today the winery exports to more than 15 countries worldwide. At age 94, in 2000, he passed away leaving his sons Javier and Alvaro to run the vineyard.
Although Amado envisioned a much larger operation than what the Paredes family runs today, there are no plans to expand. Instead the Paredes brothers are insistent on maintaining and exceeding the quality of their wines. A massive and costly replanting process began four years ago. “We have learned over many years which grapes grow best where,” says Javier. With the lifespan of a vineyard between 20-25 years, new plants must be planted to keep the winery healthy. “Four years ago we pulled out 11 hectares of poor producing Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc vines. Then we let the land rest for three years.” Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Viognier clones were planted in their place. “We wanted to maximize the scientific knowledge available. These clones mean that every plant is the same and reacts the same way to flowering, ripening and other physiological and environmental conditions,” explains Javier.
The first results were produced with the first bottling of 2003 Syrah wine. “Our first vintage was horrible,” remembers Javier. “We dumped it all out.” But the 2004 harvest has been excellent. During the growing season the vines underwent “green pruning” where green grape bunches are removed to enable the vine to produce a better quality fruit with fewer grapes. “The grape must from this vintage is incredible.” Although this is their first successful bottling, “Uncorked” the premier wine guide of Chile is recognizing the wine’s potential and suggesting it could become one of the best Syrah’s in Chile. During Javier’s stop last week in Regina, he held a tasting that included this new wine. Despite only three months of aging in the bottle, it’s showing great potential. A big wine that’s still young with huge aromas of vanilla, lots of pepper and ripe red fruit. The finish exhibits very strong yet drinkable tannins, which shows good aging potential. Only 500 cases were produced this year.
(see picture above)
Javier de Paredes presenting a 3 litre Torreon de Paredes Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 1995 to Chef David Flegel, Radisson Hotel Saskatchewan, who prepared the food for Javier?s Winemaker Dinner. A month later David was Chef for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth?s stay at the Hotel Saskatchewan.
Javier’s Regina wine tour culminated with a fabulous winemaker’s dinner put on at the Hotel Saskatchewan by Executive Chef David Flegel and his team. The palate opener of the evening was a pretty Valle de Rengo Chardonnay 2003. This light fresh wine with its short finish was perfect to open the taste buds in anticipation of a superb meal. One of the highlights of the evening was Torreon’s Valle de Rengo Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé 2004, one of the best example I’ve enjoyed of a rosé. This wine is full of fruit character, bursting with fresh from-the-field strawberries. It’s slightly tannic with excellent acidity. It paired perfectly with the tempura fried trout with ginger soy sauce.
The second highlight was the Special Reserve Don Amado 1998, a wine produced in honour of their late father. We revelled in this wine. Its complexity transported the meal to another plane. The vanilla, chocolate, ripe red cherries and well-rounded tannins paired beautifully with the Qu’appelle Valley elk loin, wild mushrooms and barley risotto. This wine gets consistently excellent reviews and is rated among the top five reds of Chile, a sliver medalist at the International Wine and Spirits competition in London, UK. The finale was the Reserve Late Harvest 2002 (100% Gewurztraminer) served with a chocolate panna cotta, port balsamic glazed cherries and a chocolate truffle torte. This wine is simply elegant bursting with apricots, honey and nectar.
The Torreon de Paredes Estate Winery is more than just wine. It’s about values, vision, passion and leadership. It’s so important in the age of mass produced McWine to support small wineries that craft an excellent product. Small wineries such as this one stand for something more than just producing lots of wine. They stand for family, the environment, and for quality. Taste the difference for yourself.
Vol 3, Issue 15
Wednesday April 20, 2005
Savour Life Magazine is Saskatchewan’s Only On-Line Food and Drink Magazine.