Description

PRODUCER:
Viña Echeverría is a family-run estate winery, owned and managed by the Echeverría family. Established in 1930, but with an agricultural heritage going back to the 1700s, Viña Echeverría is as much today, as always, driven by a shared passion for winemaking and an uncompromising search for excellence. Viña Echeverría combines nearly a century of viticulture and winemaking experience with a modern state-of-the-art winery to produce an extensive collection of quality wines. The ‘No es Pituko’ range represents a radical departure from the rest of the more traditional Echeverría wines, both in look and makeup, being vinified naturally, without any additions at any stage. Viña Echeverría has recently been awarded its Sustainable Winery status by Wines of Chile, as well as its ISO9000 certification.

VINEYARD:
The vineyard is located in Maipo Alto in the Central Valley. Alto Maipo reaches into the foothills of the Andean Mountains; the vineyard is situated at elevations of between 400 to 800 metres above sea level. The afternoon sun warms the vineyard and the cool mountain breezes that slide down the hillside at night create a broad oscillation between day and night temperatures. This diurnal temperature difference creates perfect conditions for bold yet elegant red wines, especially the regional star Cabernet Sauvignon. Careful pruning is carried out to allow the correct balance between the canopy and the fruit, while irrigation is carefully managed to avoid dehydration. The vines are grown in medium fertility soils of mostly red and black clay.

WINEMAKING:
This iconic Cabernet Sauvignon was created as a dedication to Roberto Echeverria Snr, the founder and original winemaker at Viña Echeverría. A manual harvest took place when the grapes had reached optimal phenolic ripeness; they were then carried immediately to the winery in 18kg boxes and were carefully selected. The grapes were fermented in 12,000 litre stainless steel vats for 10 days at controlled temperatures of between 25 and 28°C with selected yeasts. An extended skin maceration took place for an additional 10 to 15 days. The wine then went through 100% malolactic conversion before being aged in 225-litre new French oak barrels for 18 months. The wine was blended and returned to barrels for six additional months.

VINTAGE:
The 2017 harvest was characterised by high temperatures throughout the ripening period from véraison onwards and late rainfall during spring. The temperatures were warm and favourable during flowering. The warm average temperatures allowed for a high accumulation of sugars in the berries, which resulted in an earlier harvest than usual, by one to two weeks. The red wines achieved soft tannins, good colour and a great aromatic expression.

TASTING NOTE:
Opulent with intense aromas of dark plum and blackcurrant layered with eucalyptus and menthol. This is a concentrated wine with black pepper and bitter chocolate flavours complemented by round and supple tannins, through to a long, elegant finish.

GRAPES:
Cabernet Sauvignon 85%, Petit Verdot 5%, Syrah 10%.

AWARDS:
• 90 Points, James Suckling, 2024