WARMING TO CHILE:Its wines are unlikely stars, writes Joe Breen
We Irish are recent converts to the pleasures of the vine, so it is perhaps appropriate that we have taken to the New World's nascent producers with zeal. Australian wines have the largest share of the Irish market, at just under 25 per cent, closely followed by the unlikely star of Chile.
We are not alone in falling for Aussie charms, but we are strikingly individualistic in our love of Chilean wine. Although the South American country is the world's sixth-biggest wine exporter, at 6 per cent of the global market - France leads the pack, at 22 per cent - we have taken to Chilean wines with such relish that they account for 21c of every €1 we spend on wine.
It is a remarkable success story for Chile's relatively young wine industry; it is only in the past 10 to 15 years that it has become a global player. It has muscled its way in by providing good-quality, fruity wines at reasonable prices - music to the ears of Irish consumers.
In their varietal splendour, however, Chilean wines have lacked a certain distinctiveness, and so could be vulnerable to losing market share to a more competitively-priced range from another country. Remedies such as the attempt to champion Carménère as a unique example of Chilean viticulture have received mixed receptions; Carménère is unlikely to become to Chile what Zinfandel is to California.
But there has been some success in positioning Chile somewhere above the bargain basement. The challenge is to get customers to move from the €9.95 bracket into the €15-plus bracket - which is to say the country's reserva wines.
High-end bottles, such as the impressive Altair, show what can be achieved; established names, such as Montes, Montgras, Carmen, Errazuriz, Casa Silva and Cono Sur, are using high-end wines to try to tempt consumers to trade up, and the diversity of Chile's wine regions is increasingly stressed.
After tasting a wide range of Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, you cannot help but feel there is work still to be done. The Pinots are certainly improving. That cloying jammy texture is not now so evident, and some wines are developing an inviting savoury, earthy quality. Sauvignon Blanc looks more dependable, but I wonder if the world is getting tired of this varietal.
In both cases the alcohol level can be daunting. Unfortunately, the lighter whites can be too light. There is a middle line, and those who follow it will prosper.