This juicy, full-of-fruit red sums up the best of Aussie wine – gorgeous ripe flavour, good intensity and freshness. Way & Cat is short for ‘wayfaring catador’, catador being Spanish for taster.
So the name is a tribute to how the team source their fruit – they head out into the vineyards to taste the grapes of their grower friends. When they find the selections they like, they vinify each parcel separately, then blend the results into fruit first expressions of the varieties they chose. That blend changes vintage by vintage, depending on what performs well that year. It's top for versatility too – great as a glass on its own, tasty with roasted vegetable quiche, sausage and mash. And just the ticket at a barbecue.
However, a down draught from the Andes and the Pacific’s Humboldt Current both help to moderate temperatures by day and ensure very cold nights.
In addition, the sunlight is exceptionally bright and snowmelt from the Andes provides all the irrigation water required.
Viña Falernia, one of only two wineries in the valley, was built in the late 1990s by Italian Giorgio Flessati and won a Trophy with its first vintage. Elqui produces “some particularly gutsy Syrah at altitudes of over 2,000 metres” (World Atlas of Wine), and the Carmenère is equally robust.
Deep bramble, cassis and spice character, it's great with lamb. Best decanted.
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The award-winning Casa Silva estate was founded by Emilio Bouchon who arrived in Chile from Bordeaux in 1892. Today, it's run by Mario Pablo Silva, who has made the property one of the leading estates in Chile. The family has pioneered new regions there and been at the forefront of research into viticulture. You can taste that expertise and enthusiasm in this red. A blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Carmenère, this 2019 Casa Silva is extremely smooth and juicy with fresh red berry and black cherry fruits.
Thanks to snowmelt from the Andes and the wonders of irrigation, green and flourishing vineyards stand out in contrast to their lunar-like surroundings.
Alta Tierra is from Viña Falernia, owned by cousins Aldo Olivier and Giorgio Flessati.
They have 135 hectares of beautifully manicured vineyards and an ultra modern cellar. In 2005 their first vintage won a Trophy and put Elqui on the map.
This dazzling Sauvignon Blanc displays classic varietal character of elderflower and freshly mown grass with ripe melon and citrus fruit.
Serve as an aperitif or partner with spicy Asian dishes or fish.
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