by Elyas Beria

BI had the good fortune of meeting Ana Maria Cumsille of Chile’s Altaïr Vineyards in October of 2007. Altaïr produces only two wines but they have the deserving reputation for being among Chile’s finest.

Altaïr is situated in the Alto Cachapoal region, which Cumsille describes as the “Margaux of Chile.” It’s not surprising that she chooses to make such an analogy since she earned her degree in enology from Bordeaux University and spent the 1997 harvest season at Château Margaux. Stylistically her wines have much in common with those from France’s premier wine region. Although it is perhaps the most unsophisticated type of comparison to make, I can’t help but remark that this striking winemaker has a gentle presence and a grace that somehow migrates into her wines. I’m so used to expecting New World wines to be bursting at the seams with gobs of jammy fruit that it’s a revelation to come across examples like these restrained beauties.

Cumsille emphasizes that her wines are less powerful than those from the nearby Colchagua Valley, hence more balanced with more emphasis on expression of terroir. I’ve heard French winemakers say that it’s really not possible to achieve true expression of terroir in New World wines, but Ana Maria Cumsille disagrees. “Terroir is the mixture of the climate, the soil, and the winemaker’s art and those three characteristics are possible to find in a certain place whether in the Old or New World,” she insists. “Altaïr is a wine developed under that concept; it is a determinant in our philosophy that we work toward the expression of the Alto Cachapoal in our wine.”

The first of her two wines that I tasted was the 2004 Viña Altaïr Sideral Rapel Valley. It’s an impressive and showy wine comprised of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 6% Carménère, 5% Sangiovese, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Syrah. What seems like an unruly menagerie of grapes makes for a well balanced parade of sweet plummy aromatics followed by beautiful fruit flavors and minerality that hits all the right notes. The finish is nice and long and although the tannins make their presence known—hinting at the wine’s ageing potential—they are soft and approachable.

Altaïr’s top bottling is a wine that is simply called Altaïr. The 2004 Viña Altaïr Cachapoal Valley impressed me with its serious silky smoothness. Its beautiful grown-up cedary elegance made me feel a bit like a self-conscious teenager.

Both of these two wines (and most Chilean wines in general for that matter) come from vines that are growing on their own roots, which is hardly the case in Bordeaux. Most vines in France are grafted onto phylloxera-resistant roots. Anecdotal evidence suggests that wines produced from ungrafted vines are slightly lower in alcohol and exhibit better overall balance, although Cumsille states that she personally hasn’t experienced this phenomenon. Phylloxera has never infested Chilean vineyards and in this aspect they have a big hidden advantage over vineyards in other wine growing regions.

Anyone with doubts about the quality of Chilean wine hasn’t tried Altaïr yet and certainly should. As talented winemakers with well-developed visions like Cumsille proliferate throughout the world’s newer wine regions those places will benefit, but it will be us wine drinkers who will be the ultimate winners.