Wine Club: Pacific Coast to Andean Heights!

With this edition of Wine Club, we trek from the Pacific coast of Chile, into the heights of the Andes in Argentina! We’re calling it costa a la cordillera (from the coast into the mountains).

First, we visit Chile through a bottle of exquisite Riesling from Casablanca Valley, by the producer Lafken. Known mostly for excellent Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc, we now have proof vintners down there can make great Riesling, too! 

The quality of all the wines from Lafken is obvious, and it’s easy to see why. They produce very limited quantities, with every member of the family playing a role. They focus on harmonizing with the environment within their vineyards. They hand harvest, which allows for inspection of each cluster so they know they’re harvesting at the right time. In their garage sized winery, they meld tradition and respect for their land with the right modern technologies to produce exceptional, and honest, wine. We love their work!

The second bottle comes from one of our absolute favorite regions. The Uco Valley produces wines with a sense of place and freshness. The super high altitude means extreme sun exposure, and massive swings in temperature from day to night. This combined with their alluvial soil leads to grapes with full ripeness, and heightened acidity. In many ways, it is the holy grail of wine regions. 

The wine, a Malbec by Finca La Escarcha, epitomizes the style. It’s beautiful purple hue comes directly from the direct sunlight we mentioned above. All the classic aromas and flavors are present, just in a more approachable, less massive presentation. We really love the balance between fruit and secondary notes. We always talk about the importance of freshness and balance, and this wine demonstrates exactly what we mean.

As with the last selection, please allow us to reach out to you about picking up. We’re doing our best to avoid a rush to the shop, while making sure you get your Wine Club in a timely manner. Gracias, stay healthy, and enjoy your costa a la cordillera Wine Club!

Interested in a deeper dive into the similarities and differences between coastal and high-altitude wine regions through the lens of the Casablanca and Uco valleys? Check out this post!