Matetic Corralillo Sauvignon Blanc, San Antonio, Chile

Matetic vineyards embody the pioneering spirit and vision of modern Chilean winemaking. This biodynamic and organic project was founded in 1999 by the Matetic family. Already established as farmers with extensive landholdings, the fourth generation of the family turned their attention to grapes. Confident of the attributes of the climate and soils in the coastal El Rosario Valley of San Antonio, they planted 120 hectares of vines, and now farm 160 hectares of coastal biodynamic vineyard. Their wines move from the fruit-forward Corralillo range, through the more complex and layered EQ range, with the flagship Matetic Syrah at the top of the tree.

The grapes come from three different blocks of the San Antonio vineyards, each planted to a different clone: 242, Davis 1, and 107. The soils are made up of decomposed granite and quartz and the vineyards are farmed biodynamically and organically. The grapes were hand- harvested, block by block to ensure optimal ripeness.

A proportion of whole bunches were used and these were pressed directly, whilst de-stemmed grapes underwent a cold maceration for 6-8 hours. Fermentation took place at low temperatures in stainless steel tanks of various sizes for 30 days, followed by three months on the fine lees, with regular pump-overs.