Pinot Noir from South America

Pinot Noir from South America is delicious, and we have some excellent wines in our portfolio which demonstrates this.

So...

I got some sommeliers and a journalist together and we went to discuss the ins and outs of Pinot Noir. I kicked off the conversation with the Casablanca Valley in Chile, I shared my experience of when I was there with a group of sommeliers. I spoke about the maritime influence of the valley and explained the annual rainfall from the area which is 350mm of water a year. These two facts are very important for the Pinot Noir growing in the area as it is a cold climate grape variety. The Casablanca Valley was first planted in 1980 and it was soon realised that this would be a great area for this delicate grape variety, making fresh, crisp and dry styles of wine. The soil in Casablanca is famous for its abundance of clay and sand over weathered granite.

Where we went...

The Greenhouse Restaurant, London – Modern European cuisine in extremely stylish surroundings.

Who we were...
Denise Medrano- Journalist (@DeniseMedrano), Johannes Hartmann- Petrus Restaurant, Vincent Pastorello- Alain Ducasse Restaurant, Jacques Savary de Beauregard- Home House Private Members Club.

What we ate...

What we tasted...

All the wines were from Cono Sur, Adolfo Hurtado, their winemaker, has a passion for Pinot Noir, so much so that he has a dedicated cellar just for this variety.
We tasted Vision Riesling as our aperitif with starters and the Pinot Noir, Ocio two vintages 
( 2008 & 2009 )  and 20 Barrels.

Food & Wine pairing...

With the first course we had Pinot Noir Vision 2010-

The wine really complemented the different flavours of the beef tartare. Jacques mentioned that he really liked the saltiness and oxidative flavours come from the Soy Sauce matching well with the Vision Pinot Noir, the wine really highlighted the dish. Johannes agreed with Jacques adding he really like the horseradish after taste from the dish combining with the fruitiness of the Pinot Noir.

With our main course, Vincent Pastorello really enjoyed the 2008 vintage of Ocio, saying that the wine was elegant and easier  to drink than the slightly younger 2009. The vanilla oil with the fatness of the pork integrated the flavours of the wine; Denise Medrano added.

To finish we had a selection of 3 cheeses; Montgomery Cheddar, Brie and Langres with the 20 Barrels. The cheddar was the winning cheese to match the dish. 

Best wine...

Ocio 2008, for its slightly more matured, developed flavour.

Best food match...

Vincent though 2008 Ocio with the pork was the best match but all the rest of us really liked the Vision with the Beef Tartare.