The
winesof Chile
Part 4: Matetic, San Antonio Valley
Matetic
is one of Chile's most remarkable wine estates. It's a huge, hilly 16
000 hectare property, mostly consisting of eucalyptus and pine woods,
but with three main agricultural products: sheep, blueberries and
wine. It’s the wine that was the focus of our visit.
The
Matetic family are of Croatian origin, and came to Chile 100 years
ago. They began in Patagonia, at the southern tip of the country,
where they have 100 000 hectares of land used for sheep and dairy
farming. They also made a lot of money through ironwork, where they
had a near monopoly. They bought the Matetic Estate in the San Antonio
Valley some 20 years ago. The wine business was started in 1999, but
it is only in 2008 that they made a profit for the first time.
As
well as making some of Chile’s best wines, Matetic is gaining
recognition because it is one of the few Chilean estates to have
adopted biodynamics, a supercharged form of organics that is gaining
ground in winegrowing. 120 hectares of vineyards have been planted to
date, and the whole estate (not just the vineyards) is worked
organically. The grapes are certified organic by BCS since 2004, and
for the last couple of years the vineyards have been managed
bodynamically. The goal is to become certified in due course.
We
met with winemaker Paula Cárdenas (above),
who has been heading up the winemaking here since 2006 for a tour,
tasting and lunch.
Matetic
is in San Antonio, the cool part of Casablanca, and just 20 km from
the sea, so it benefits from sea breezes in the afternoon. There's a
high diurnal temperature fluctuation – in the summer it can range
from 27 C during the afternoon to 7 C at night. The low vigour soils
are ideal for viticulture. They are well drained and the roots of the
vines go down 2–4 m looking for nutrients. The soils are decomposed
granite with 40–60 cm of friable clay on the surface.
I
asked Paula how the transition to working biodynamically has gone.
'The main challenge is to understand the concept, to see everything,'
she replied. 'In school everyone teaches you how the plant works and
gives you the scientific view of viticulture, which is to decompose
everything into small parts. You have to integrate and be able to see
that everything is connected – to see holistically. Everytime I try
to see more and understand more, it is more interesting’, she adds.
‘You never finish learning.’
A short film of my visit
Composting
is practiced here: cow manure, grass, grape skins and stems are used.
Humid places are chosen for burying the cow horns, one of the more
esoteric aspects of biodynamic farming. In the winter, the vineyards
are weeded by alpacas, which is a nice Chilean touch.
Paula
reveals that there are plans to use horses to work the land, but to do
this they need to get special equipment that’s very old. What about
the biodynamic calendar? ‘At first we didn’t workwith it, but we’re now trying to implement this’, says
Paula. She adds that, ‘If the owner says you have to be biodynamic,
it is your job, but I actually believe in it. There are some things
that are difficult to believe, but it is up to you: the main idea is
to see everything as a whole.’
The
Matetic winery was built in 2004 and currently processes 300 000
litres. Currently some 14 000 cases are released annually. Pauls
reckons that the maximum capacity, which will be reached in 4 years,
is likely to be 35 000 cases. All the grapes are hand harvested into
bins, and there’s a selection table. The grapes are crushed and then
taken to the fermenters by gravity. Open fermenters are used for the
reds, with punching down and pumping over both employed. All the wines
except for the Sauvignon Blanc go into barrel.
There
are two ranges: Coralillo is a sort of second label, with the top
wines labelled as EQ. UK availability: Genesis, Majestic, Oddbins and
Wine Society.
Matetic
EQ Sauvignon Blanc 2007 Made with the 242 clone which gives tropical and citrus notes,
given a short skin maceration before pressing, and fermented in
stainless steel. Some small stainless steel barrels (300 litres) are
also used for work with the lees. Brightly fruited with sweet, rounded
nose. The palate is bright with rounded fruit and high acidity. Really
fresh, showing a nice juicy character. 89/100 (UK retail £9)
Matetic
EQ Chardonnay 2006 14.5% alcohol. From two different sites: one is richer, the other
more mineral. Fermented in barrels, 30% of which are new. Just 20%
malolactic was used from 2007. Three different commercial yeasts with
some wild yeast ferments, which Paula reckons add spice and onion
notes. 1000 cases made. Rich toasty nose is smooth and oaty with some
fig and tropical fruit notes. The palate is complex and broad with
rich figgy, toasty, spicy, bready characters. Powerful and complex.
91/100 (UK retail £12)
Matetic
EQ Pinot Noir 2006 14.5% alcohol. Massale selection, spending 10 months in oak, 30%
of which is new. 1500 cases made. Delicious pure dark cherry fruit
nose with a bit of tinned strawberry, too. Smooth, elegant palate
shows lovely focus with deliciously elegant berry and cherry fruit.
Nicely perfumed with a bit of spicy structure. 92/100 (UK retail £15)
Coralillo
Merlot Malbec Reserve 2005 1800 cases made. Meaty dark fruits nose is brooding, with an
attractive, leathery, spicy undercurrent. The palate shows lovely
sweet dark fruit over the top of dense, earthy structure.
Fantastically intense and well structured, in a brilliant savoury
style. 93/100 (UK retail £12)
Matetic
EQ Syrah 2006 1500 cases made. Brilliant Syrah: cool-climate pepperiness on the
nose which is dark and fresh. Wonderful perfumed lush fruits combine
with a lovely spicy, peppery edge. The palate is lush and richly
textured with bright, fresh fruit and some meaty, chocolatey
complexity. Nice tannins give grippy structure, too. 94/100 (UK retail
£15)
The
Matetic family are of Croatian origin, and came to Chile 100 years
ago. They began in Patagonia, at the southern tip of the country,
where they have 100 000 hectares of land used for sheep and dairy
farming. They also made a lot of money through ironwork, where they
had a near monopoly. They bought the Matetic Estate in the San Antonio
Valley some 20 years ago. The wine business was started in 1999, but
it is only in 2008 that they made a profit for the first time. 
