Cacique Maravilla, Pipeno 2022 1L

100% Pais

Bío-Bío Valley, Chile

VEGAN, NO ADDED SULFUR. Volcanic soils, organically farmed. Old vines, some dating back 250 years! Grapes are hand-harvested and manually de-stemmed using a zaranda (a traditional bamboo screen), and fermented in open-top vats of raulí, a native pink oak of Chile. The skin from the grapes is used to make Grappa. The free-run juice is transferred by gravity into pipas (barrels) of raulí for several months, where the wine is aged on the fine lees. 

Juicy, bright, crunchy red berries with tart acidity and a whiff of smoke. So easy drinking that a liter disappears shockingly fast. 

Once the most prominent grape planted across Chile, Pais was ripped out in favor of trendy French varieties, or used in bulk rosé and red wines. This juicy, Gamay-esque grape has undergone a renaissance in recent years, thanks largely to winemakers like Manuel who highlight its rustic beauty with traditional wines like this one.

Manuel is the 7th generation winemaker at his vineyard. His ancestor was a conquistador that actually had a wonderful relationship with the local people who gave him the nickname Cacique Maravilla, wonderful leader. Today Manuel still farms the land and makes wine in an old school way. Very little is done in the vineyard. Minimally and organically farmed, not much pruning, no tractors.