Logavi Glup País Bío Bío Valley Chile 2019

Open this delectable, vibrant bottle of Glup! and pack your bags- this wine is taking you south of the equator! To say the South American nation of Chile is ideally suited for winegrowing would be an understatement. Hugging the Pacific Ocean for some 2,600 miles (further than the distance from New York to Los Angeles), Chile is sandwiched between deep seawater on the west and the snowcapped peaks of the Andes to the east. Long but narrow, no part of the country is more than 200 or so miles from the cooling, coastal, maritime influence of the Humboldt Current. The added benefits of Andean volcanic soils and abundant river systems originating in snowmelt from the mountains create a veritable Xanadu for grape growing. Chile may be considered a “New World” country for wine production, but its winemaking history is anything but novel: vitis vinifera grapes were first planted here in the 1500s. País, which represents some of the oldest Chilean vineyard plots, is a light-bodied red grape brought over from Spain by conquistadors and missionaries during the period of colonization. In fact, here in the United States it is known as the Mission grape as it was planted by friars at the string of missions that dot the coastal regions of California from Sonoma to San Diego. But don’t liken this to communion wine- when properly grown to limit yields and vinified by talented winemakers, País can produce ethereal, bright, and refreshing wines like Glup! Longaví is an exciting collaboration between David Nieuwoudt from South Africa and Julio Bouchon of Chile. Julio actually has winemaking in his blood- he’s the descendant of a pioneering French vintner who emigrated to Chile way back in 1887. Glup! is a tasty, lively wine that hails from the Bío-Bío River Valley in the southern hinterland of the country – where one can still find old-vine, dry-farmed, heritage vineyards of original País plantings. These 100-year-old vines had been forgotten in the rush to plant popular international varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but their fruit has found new life in the capable hands of David and Julio- resulting in a thrilling wine. The País grapes for Longaví’s 2019 Glup! were hand-harvested early in the morning and then destemmed upon arrival at the winery. After a three-day cold soak and fermentation begun by native yeast, the wine was punched down once per day for 14 days before being gently racked into a large wooden cask known as a foudre. Malolactic fermentation in the foudre softened the searing acidity of the País grape to round out the mouthfeel. The bouquet of this wine is rife with enticing aromas of rose petal and dried cranberry coupled on the palate by mouthwatering flavors of raspberry jam and tart candied cherry. Serve this slightly chilled for an even more refreshing experience on a hot summer day- you’ll want to practically gulp the Glup!