M O N T H LY N E W S
FINE WINE COLLECTION M AY 2 0 1 6
NEWS DON MELCHOR / UNITED STATES
DON MELCHOR OBTAINED THE HIGHEST SCORE IN ITS HISTORY THE AMERICAN WINE CRITIC JAMES SUCKLING RATED THE 2012 DON MELCHOR AT 98 POINTS IN HIS MOST RECENT REPORT ON CHILEAN WINE, THEREBY POSITIONING IT AMONG THE GREAT WINES OF THE WORLD.
Renowned critic and former editor of the US magazine Wine Spectator James Suckling, awarded the 2012 vintage of Don Melchor an outstanding 98 points—the highest score reached to date for this wine. The 2013 vintage earned 96 points, one of the highest scores ever received by a wine from this vintage.
This important milestone confirms the dedication and commitment of the team led by winemaker Enrique Tirado to deliver vintage after vintage of extraordinary quality and show Chile’s full potential as a producer of world-class wines. James Suckling also highlighted a large part of the Wines of Origin portfolio, which received 22 scores of 90+ points, reaffirming Concha y Toro’s position as a leader in the Chilean wine industry.
VINOS DE ORIGEN / ASIA
CONCHA Y TORO’S SUCCESSFUL PARTICIPATION IN VINEXPO HONG KONG 2016 THE ASIAN VERSION OF ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT WINE FAIRS IN THE WORLD, TOOK PLACE MAY 24–26, AND ONCE AGAIN CONCHA Y TORO MADE A GREAT SHOWING.
Viña Concha y Toro and the entire Wines of Origin portfolio once again participated in Vinexpo Hong Kong, one of the world’s most important wine fairs. The company’s imposing stand represented the Concha y Toro manor house in Pirque that included a tasting room with a 360º projection of the vineyards, the interior of the house, and the Casillero del Diablo cellars. Over the course of event’s three days, the public participated in numerous tastings of the Wines of Origin portfolio as well as tastings focused on Carmenere and Cabernet Sauvignon. Furthermore, Don Melchor, one of
the world’s finest Cabernet Sauvignons, hosted a pairing dinner prepared by chef Bruno Menard. The celebrated chef who led the Culinary Challenge during much of 2015 prepared an exclusive four-course dinner to pair with the 1988, 2005, 2010, and 2013 vintages. The dinner took place in the Hotel Grand Hyatt Hong Kong and was attended by Concha y Toro President Alfonso Larraín and Marketing Director for Wines of Origin Isabel Guilisasti, along with Asia’s most important distributors and customers in a period setting that illustrated the life and work of founder Don Melchor de Concha y Toro.
DON MELCHOR / ASIA
JEANNIE CHO LEE PRAISED THE 2012 DON MELCHOR WITH AN EXTRAORDINARY 94 POINTS IN AN ARTICLE PUBLISHED ON THE FORBES MAGAZINE WEB SITE, THE ASIAN JOURNALIST AND WINE CRITIC SINGLED OUT THE 2012 VINTAGE OF DON MELCHOR AS AMONG CHILE’S GREATEST WINES. One of Asia’s most respected and influential wine journalists, Jeannie Cho Lee MW, recently published an article on the Chilean wine industry in which she highlighted the 2012 Don Melchor and awarded it a notable 94 points. In her article, which appeared in the Forbes Asia website, Jeannie Cho Lee described Don Melchor as a complex and balanced wine and included it among Chile’s eight finest wines, making this yet another great accolade for the icon Cabernet Sauvignon from the Alto Maipo. The renowned wine writer and critic was Asia’s first Master of Wine, and she has since written two books and has been a correspondent for publications such as Wine Spectator, Decanter, The World of Fine Wine, Wine & Dine, Wine Business International, and La Revue du Vin, among others. She also regularly participates as a judge in the Decanter World Wine Awards. She is currently a co-host of In Vino Veritas, one of Hong Kong’s most popular television programs. Precisely to record the third season of the show, Jeannie Cho Lee visited Chile and met with Enrique Tirado, the winemaker responsible for Don Melchor, who will star in one of the episodes recorded in Chile, in which he will tell the story behind Don Melchor, one of the world’s greatest wines.
WINES OF ORIGIN / CHILE
IMPORTANT JAPANESE EDITOR MET WITH WINEMAKERS MEGUMI ICHIKAWA, EDITOR OF JAPAN’S SHUHAN NEWS, VISITED PIRQUE TO TASTE NUMEROUS WINES FROM THE WINES OF ORIGIN PORTFOLIO WITH WINEMAKERS ENRIQUE TIRADO, MARCELO PAPA, AND MARCIO RAMÍREZ.
Megumi Ichikawa, wine editor for Shuhan News, one of Japan’s largest media, visited Pirque on May 10 to meet with the enological team and taste some wines from the portfolio. The objective of her visit was to prepare for an article in which she would show the Japanese public the great quality of Chile’s Super and Ultra Premium wines. She began her tastings with winemaker Marcio Ramírez and the 2013 Chardonnay, 2014 Carmenere, and 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon from the Gran Reserva Serie Riberas line, which stood out enormously for the freshness and acidity in the wines, which adapt perfectly to the Japanese
palate and which she praised as elegant, fresh, and not excessively corpulent. Winemaker Marcelo Papa later joined her to taste the 2014 Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as to present the 2015 Marques de Casa Concha Pais Cinsault and Vigno 2014. Next she tasted two 2014 Carmeneres from the Terrunyo line—both the traditional version and the Lote Nº 1—which allowed her to contrast the style and evolution of both wines. She concluded her tasting session with winemaker Enrique Tirado, who presented the 2013 Don Melchor, which was one of the wines she praised the most.
WINES OF ORIGIN / CHILE
RENOWNED SOMMELIER FRED DEXHEIMER IN PIRQUE THE MASTER SOMMELIER WAS IN CHILE DURING THE LAST WEEK OF MAY AND VISITED PIRQUE TO PARTICIPATE IN A TASTING PRIMARILY FOCUSED ON COASTAL WINES AND CARMENERE AND CABERNET SAUVIGNON. The renowned North American consultant and one of the world’s 229 Master Sommeliers, Fred Dexheimer, visited Pirque to participate in a tasting divided into three topics. The first was focused on the more coastal wines from the Wines of Origin profile in which winemaker Marcio Ramírez presented the 2015 vintages of the Gran Reserva Serie Riberas Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, both from the Ucúquer Vineyard in the Cachapoal Valley, just 15 kilometers from the sea. He also showed the 2014 Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay made with grapes from the Quebrada Seca Vineyard in the Limarí Valley, which is 20 kilometers from the Pacific Ocean. The next segment was an exploration of the different Carmeneres, beginning with the 2014 Gran Reserva Serie Riberas Carmenere, followed by the 2014 Marques de Casa Concha Carmenere and the 2014 Terrunyo Carmenere. The final part of the tasting was dedicated to Cabernet Sauvignon, including the 2014 vintage from the Gran Reserva Serie Riberas line, the 2014 Marques de Casa Concha limited Edition Cabernet Sauvignon, and the 2014 Marques de Casa Concha Cabernet Sauvignon. The sommelier also met with winemaker Isabel Mitarakis to taste the seven parcels of Don Melchor as well as the 2012 icon from the Alto Maipo.
MARQUES DE CASA CONCHA / EUROPE
MARCELO PAPA’S IRELAND, DENMARK, AND HOLLAND TOUR MAY 30–JUNE 4. MARCELO PAPA PARTICIPATED IN VARIOUS ACTIVITIES IN DUBLIN, COPENHAGEN, AND AMSTERDAM, INCLUDING THE MASTERCHEF DENMARK PROGRAM.
The activities began in Dublin, the capital of Ireland, where the winemaker led a tasting dinner with Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon in the exclusive l’Ecrivain Restaurant. Guests includes journalists from such media as the Sunday Business Post, the Irish Examiner, and the Sunday Times, as well as radio host Pat Kenny, who interviewed Marcelo Papa the following day at the Newstalk studios. In Denmark the winemaker was invited to participate in the popular MasterChef television program, during which Marcelo also interacted with the participants, and once the filming was finished, he led a tasting of
the 2014 vintage of the Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay, 2014 Pinot Noir, and 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon. Upon arriving in Holland, Marcelo went to the Taste Amsterdam festival, where Marques de Casa Concha had a stand to offer tastings to the public. He also led three tastings for consumers, during which he explained the concept behind the line and the characteristics that led it to become a leader in the Super Premium category in Europe’s most important markets.
BRANDING TERRUNYO / CHILE
GRAN RESERVA SERIE RIBERAS / CHILE
TERRUNYO’S ATTRACTIVE CAMPAIGN AT THE WINE SHOP IN PIRQUE
GRAN RESERVA SERIE RIBERAS PARTICIPATED IN AN INITIATIVE TO JOIN ART AND WINE
The brand, led by winemaker Ignacio Recabarren, implemented an attractive activation in the Wine Shop in Pirque to strengthen the current campaign oriented toward Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, and Sauvignon Blanc and the celebrated origins of the wines of the Terrunyo line.
May 12–30. Gran Reserva Serie Riberas participated in the second version of Vinart, an initiative that uses wine barrels that have already outlived their usefulness for wine and turns them into art. Twenty-five artists including Karin Barrera, the artist in charge of the Gran Reserva Serie Riberas barrel, used this platform to prepare the show, which was open to the public without charge for two weeks. The initiative was sponsored by the National Council for Culture and the Arts and included the participation of 11 Chilean wineries as well as a number of tastings by the participating wineries.
RECOGNITIONS
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
98 pts
96 pts
94 pts
DON MELCHOR 2012
DON MELCHOR 2013
CARMÍN DE PEUMO 2013
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
94 pts
93 pts
92 pts
TERRUNYO
TERRUNYO
MARQUES DE CASA CONCHA
CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2013
CARMENERE LOT N°1 2014
CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2014
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
JAMESSUCKLING.COM
92 pts
92 pts
92 pts
MARQUES DE CASA CONCHA
MARQUES DE CASA CONCHA
GRAN RESERVA SERIE RIBERAS
CARMENERE 2014
CHARDONNAY 2015
M O N T H LY N E W S
FINE WINE COLLECTION
CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2014