Paying for aged wine usually costs a premium, but that’s not the case for this Chilean producer.
Unexpected Discovery
The other day at one of my favorite wine shops, I stumbled upon some bottles on the bottom shelf that were 15-30 years in age at less than $4 a bottle. I thought that maybe it was just some producer going out of business and trying to liquidate the rest of their cellar. However, finding old wines at any price range is not that common in any Chilean wine shop. I was skeptical these were still good, but at that price, it was worth a try.
Aging Chilean Wines
I talk about this topic a bit in our section on collecting, aging and storing wine. However, here’s a quick run-down:
- Most wines aren’t meant to be aged and more and more producers are making wines to be enjoyed in their youth.
- Given the unequal and “immediate pleasure”economy today, less and less people want to or can afford to age wine.
- Most people prefer wines when they are young and at their most fruity. However, some wines need time to integrate, soften up and can gain more complexity, which some collectors adore. However, some don’t like these tertiary notes that come with age. When a wine is at its peak is all relative to your own personal palate.
- If a wine is properly stored and based on a number of factors such as acidity, tannins, sugar and variety type, a wine can age decades and still either improve, maintain its peak form, and/or continue to be enjoyable a long time before dying.
- Aged wines with good provenance and from a producer/region known for age worthy wines tend to increase in price until it reaches a point where it’s most likely dead or the bottle condition looks bad when it will start to lower in price. This is because the supply goes down as quality theoretically increases.
- Average Chileans don’t have a long history or culture of aging their wines, but some producers are making wines to compete with the top and most age worthy wines around the world. However, there’s far less of a proven track record since many of these wines were made in the late 90’s and we’re only now starting to see how well they’re aging. The first Seña was 1995, Chadwick 1999, Clos Apalta 1997, and Almaviva 1998. The first Don Melchor was 1987 though. Some verticals and comparisons with other top aged wines are starting to be done, but it also seems clear that these Chilean icons have been getting better, so the best may be yet to come.
My Experience with Aged Chilean Wines
In Chile, I’ve been lucky enough to have a wine friend who was able to acquire a large stash of Chilean wines from the 80’s for a song, so I’ve had a few over the years. He’s also been living here for around 2 decades, so he also has some wines from the 90’s and early 2000’s which I’ve also tasted a bit. Most of them were non-expensive reds although almost all Chilean wines were inexpensive back then.
Surprisingly, all the aged Chilean wines I’ve tasted were alive and not vinegar at 20-40 years of age. They weren’t as profound or complex as Bordeaux I’ve had of the same age, but if you like aged reds, these wines all displayed tertiary notes, soft texture and remaining fruit and acidity. Perhaps the 80’s versions were better than the 90’s when wines started to get bigger, oakier and bolder. This is because they lacked the acidity to age as gracefully, but none of them were completely unenjoyable except perhaps a nearly 40 year old Chilean sparkling I had.
Viña Santa Monica
So back to my aged wine finds at the store–I decided to pick up a couple of bottles and contact the producer, Santa Monica, for more information. What did I find out?
First of all, they were not going out of business. Secondly, their owner and original winemaker, Don Emilio de Solminihac, was trained in Bordeaux and wanted to make wines with the capability of aging like in Bordeaux. He started off as a professor and consultant in Chile until he purchased his own winery in 1976 around Rancagua (Rapel Valley) and named it after his wife Monica. Thirdly, if you check out their online store, most of their wines for sale are 20-30 years of age with a few around 12 years of age. Many are only $5 with the most expensive wines costing $23. Finally, most of their sales are direct. I found some at Supermercado Diez, but that’s the only place I’ve ever seen them.
Bottom line, this producer proudly sells wines with a lot of age at bargain prices. However, let’s taste the wine and actually see if they’ve aged well,
Tasting Notes
1995 Santa Monica Riesling Reserva Rapel
Dark gold color, showing its age, but still shiny, not dull, so definitely not dead on appearance. The nose reminds me of a lot of old German Rieslings I’ve had. Oxidative but not as much as I was expecting. There are more oxidative notes on the palate than the nose. The nose still shows quite a bit of fruit, honey and a touch of petrol. The palate also starts fruity and finishes with some medium+ acid, minerality and spicy, slightly bitter oxidative notes. Medium body. Dry. A bit short and a lot less minerality than better German Rieslings, but otherwise, this is a steal for those who like aged Riesling at only $4. 89
1999 Santa Monica Semillon Reserva Rapel
I don’t like this as much as the 1995 Riesling, which was better equipped to age with more natural sugar and acid. Here the aromatics are rather mute. The acid is low. Medium-body. Oxidative nutty notes. Toasty spicy notes. Not much fruit. Touch of honey and white flowers. Not dead. Color is not as dark as the Riesling and still shiny, but it’s something more for sherry lovers at this point. 85
Risk of aged wines
If you’ve never tried aged wines, Viña Santa Monica is a way to try some without the financial risk. Drinking aged wines is always a risk. Besides the risk of the wine going bad, some bottles just show better or worse at any given moment. Imagine spending $5,000 on an old bottle of Petrus and having it be on decline, corked or not showing well. Therefore, grabbing a few bottles of Viña Santa Monica for less than $4 each is a risk free way to experiment with old wines. I’d be curious to try Santa Monica’s reds next time.
Moreover, there are some universal aspects to tertiary notes in old whites and reds no matter if it’s a cheap or expensive wine as long as it’s still alive. You just have to find out if you like those tertiary notes in wines. Do you like mushrooms, nuttiness, leather, bruised apple, and dried fruit notes in your wine? If not, then drink your wines younger although that’s still relative to each wine’s potential drinking window. That’s why you have to keep experimenting.
If there’s good enough structure, depth and balance to combine the tertiary notes with primary and secondary notes, it can make something amazing although I’ve experienced amazement and disappointment with cheaper old wines and expensive ones. There’s always a risk-reward factor.
Knowing a producer who has a reputation for making age worthy wines who still hasn’t increased their costs much since they first made them is a great way to start your wine aging and collecting journey. If you can’t find Santa Monica outside Chile, then I recommend Cousiño Macul as an old-school producer making wine you can lay down for moderate prices. They distribute globally. Their Finis Terrae cuvee usually isn’t released until around 6 years after the vintage much like Reserva and Gran Reserva Riojas. However, they’re not going to be as old as Santa Monica’s.
Conclusion
Can Chilean wines age? Yes. If you’re into aged wines, some Chilean wines are capable of aging and a Chilean wine from the 80’s and 90’s might still be good. Given many Chilean wines tend to have more acidity than California wines, one could argue they’re more capable of aging than many American wines. Most Chilean wines are drinkable (or even at their best) young but a few may need 3-5 years to soften up and show all they have like many VIGNO Carignan wines from Maule or Icon level Bordeaux blends. A handful of Chilean wines may have the potential to age like the best Bordeaux but time will tell.