The Humble Gourmand

Dear friends,

When I started the Thoreau Wine Society a few years ago, I winged it – my wine career had consisted of schlepping in stores for other people, writing auction catalogs, pouring La Landonne in other people’s glasses (about which I can’t really complain), yet I felt a genuine passion for wine – a passion that led me to France and beyond, during which I’ve spent a chunk of my life now meeting vignerons, tasting, eating, drinking with them in their world – gaining insight about the French perspective on flavor, timing, the simple art of each meal, the idea of subtlety and nuance, ideas that can be far from our framework. Nonetheless, I find many Americans who live by such passion, driving many of us together, quite a diverse global group indeed, compelled by this gift of excellent cuisine.

My dear friend Bob and I have tasted around the world together (he could be standing in Mounir Saouma’s cellar at this moment) – and we have similar (but not matching) palates, although he accuses me of liking a touch more French oak from certain producers than does he – I don’t totally agree, but vive la diversite!

In my attempt to get organized and make this grassroots approach work, I have invited Bob to offer some of his tasting notes. He has far more experience than I and has volumes of opinions. Thus I hope you will welcome these missives, which will ideally come one to two times weekly. If you have arrived on this list and don’t want to be here, I welcome you to gently hit the unsubscribe option.

Here is Bob’s latest review (eventually, I will need not introduce him). Try some of his offerings, and some of mine, and compare.

CHILEAN SANCERRE?

Chilean Sancerre? Aren’t the vineyards of Chile and the eastern Loire valley in France about 9000 miles apart? How can a Sauvignon Blanc from Chile be anything like a S.B. from Sancerre? When it is made by Claudia Gomez from the Garces Silva winery in central Chile a mere 9 miles east of the Pacific Ocean.

Marketed under the label Amayna—which means the calm after the storm, by the way—this is simply the most Loire like wine from Chile that it has been my privilege to taste. Viña Garcés Silva is a family-owned winery located in the emerging Leyda Valley, a subvalley of Chile’s San Antonio region. General manager and partner Matias Garcés oversees the project, which began in 1999, and was the first to commercially plant vines in Leyda Valley, where cool temperatures and arid conditions make viticulture virtually impossible without adequate irrigation. The winery has 370 acres of vineyards, of which approximately 100 are designated for the winery’s own production; the remaining grapes are sold to Vina Montes, one of Chile’s top wineries. The winery makes a full-throttle Chardonnay, an earthy Pinot Noir and a spicy yet elegant Syrah in addition to Sauvignon Blanc.

Attracted by the label and the bottle—all sales begin with the eyes—I walked over to the Amayna table at a very recent trade tasting of Chilean wines. The S.B. was the first and perhaps the best wine I tasted over the course of 2 hours. Never having tasted the wine before, I was immediately struck by the subtle, elegant, inviting bouquet of fresh herbs, grapefruit peel and the aroma of the sea. Tasting confirmed the attractive qualities on the nose. This was truly a wine synthesizing soil, fruit and ambient conditions. It smelled and tasted more like a good Sancerre than any other Sauvignon Blanc I have tasted from any other region than the Loire.

The lady in the purple pants pouring the wine was none other than the winemaker and vineyard manager Claudia Gomez. I told her that except for the warmth on the finish, served blind I would have said Sancerre. She smiled and told me that she had worked in Sancerre for almost 4 years, half of the time at one of the most famous estate in Sancerre, Alphonse Mellot. She has translated her experience from Sancerre to Chile brilliantly! With the price of good Sancerre moving into the $30-40 range, the price tag of $21 seems reasonable to me. There are of course many S.B.’s from various parts of “the new world” which retail for less. Frankly, the Amyana buries just about any New Zealand, South African, Austrian or American Sauvignon Blanc I have tasted. I can not recommend this lovely wine too highly.

Amyana Sauvignon Blanc Leyda Valley 2007

$19.99/bottle, applicable tax and delivery / shipping not included. Please reply to mary@thoreauwinesociety.com if interested in ordering.

Slainte and many thanks,

Mary Taylor & Bob Millman

Thoreau Wine Society

1. Liz Caskey

   July 1 11:48 a.m. 1

   Hi Mary,

   Great note. I live in Chile and work as a food/wine writer and with our Culinary & Wine Tours business. Amayna is one of our all around favorites and I absolutely agree with you both about terming it "Chilean Sancerre" and Claudia Gomez's talent. Thanks for sharing. I am sending this out to our peeps too!

2. Flash

   July 7 12:40 p.m. 2

   Nice!

3. missmary

   July 15 1:44 p.m. 3

   Thanks for the positive feedback. Although we are francophiles for the most part, we are finding excellent work in may other areas - especially wines made with passion and old-world patience and knowledge - bravo Claudia Gomez!

4. carmen

   August 1 9:18 p.m. 4

   I agree with you, it´s one of the the best SB from Chile, but she is not the winemaker, isn´t her?

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