Should you age your Chilean red wines?
Aging Chilean Reds
I’ve written about this topic before in relation to Chilean whites. I’ve since had a Chilean Semillon from the 60’s that was still alive and interesting, so some Chilean whites are more ageable than you think. As far as Chile’s reds, my general comments about aging Chilean wines remain the same: Chileans haven’t had a culture of aging wines. Their culture and economic circumstances make wine more of an immediate consumption product. Abroad, Chilean wines are often bargain proxy wines people drink young to avoid opening their more expensive ageworthy wines. Therefore, not many people know how well Chilean wines can age.
First of all, can you find aged Chilean wines? Most of them have already been consumed. They don’t have the same resale value as Bordeaux, etc. because they don’t have the earned reputation. The old wineries here do have cellars of their old vintages if you’re lucky enough to know the owner. I’ve been lucky to have a wine tasting friend who found a store trying to get rid of old stock from the 80’s and 90’s for cheap, so he has a big stash of old Chilean wines. Of course, he’s not Chilean. However, Chile has a growing population of local wine geeks and sommeliers who may start the trend of aging their Chilean wines more, but that’s not the trend in general among wine lovers around the world; Less people are aging their wines and wineries are making their top ageworthy wines more approachable young.
My experience with my friend’s old Chilean reds is similar to my experience with old California reds. First of all, they’re most likely to be Bordeaux blends, which means Cabernet Sauvignon dominated wines, which is one of the more proven ageable varieties. It also tends to barrel aged which also helps it age and add tannins. However, other red varieties in Chile may be worth aging, especially the top Carignan. I even had a great 20 year old Chilean Cinsault recently too. In California, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Pinot Noir can be ageworthy too but it depends on the style.
The 80’s wines of both California and Chile are often better than the 90’s because they were more classically styled with higher acidity for better aging while during the 90’s, some producers started to make more modern, Parkerized wines. However, like with all wines, enjoying aged wines really depends on your palate and if you like the tertiary notes it brings. What I can say is that all the aged Chilean reds I’ve had from the 80’s and 90’s were not vinegar, and most were entry level wines. Hence, they were not as endowed with powerful fruit and fancy oak, but they were still pleasant if you like aged wines. This also bodes well for the modern icon wines of today like Almaviva and Seña, which emerged in the 90’s but are mostly following today’s trends for more balanced wines, which is another key for aging. Given Chile’s geography and climate, the alcohol tends to be lower here with higher acidity for aging compared to California but without the California prices.
Cousiño-Macul
Since aging depends on the style of winemaking as much as the variety, a lot depends on the producer. One producer that still makes classically (more Old World) styled wines more like the 80’s is Cousiño-Macul. It’s one of the oldest wineries in Chile, founded in 1856. Although I just recently got around to visiting one of Chile’s classic producers, Santa Rita, Cousiño-Macul was one of the first wineries I visited here. It was also probably the first wine I ever bought and tried from Chile when I was living in the US. They are definitely well distributed in the US and Europe. Given that I know their style and have had their wine from the 80’s at around 40 years old, I thought I’d check in on a 10+ year old bottle of theirs to see how it’s evolving. 
Tasting Notes
2015 Cousiño-Macul Finis Terrae Maipo
63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 12% Syrah. Most of this is sourced from 80 year old vines in Macul but the rest is taken from younger vines in Buin on the valley floor. Generally, old vines at higher elevation are better for ageable wines. The nose is more secondary and just becoming tertiary at this point. Spice. Tobacco. BBQ flavored chips and jerky. The fruit is becoming more like dried dark berry fruit but there’s still plus acidity and soft tannins to give it structure for further aging. There’s chocolate and licorice. The alcohol is a little high but not noticeable unless you’re eating something spicy. This wasn’t kept in perfect conditions at 55 degrees its whole life, but it was kept in a dark basement most of the time that is on average in the 60’s, so perhaps this is a little more advanced than say an under $50 Bordeaux of similar quality in perfect conditions but it’s not far off. If you want more tertiary and less secondary like I do then perhaps let it age another 2-5 years. Given the entry level wines I’ve had of this producer from the 80s and their continued classic style with higher acidity, this should be capable of lasting even longer if kept well. I see this for 25-35 dollars in the US, but it can be found for as cheap as 15 dollars here in Chile. This is one of their midrange level wines. Chilean wines like this are affordable ways to experiment with aging wines, so buy a case and see how it evolves every 4-5 years. 92