Montes Alpha Pinot Noir 2020

Description

VINEYARDS

The vineyards that produce the grapes for our Montes Alpha Pinot Noir are located in Valleys of Casablanca, Zapallar, and Leyda, all of which are in the Aconcagua Coast zone.
All of the vineyards are vertically positioned, drip irrigated, and produce yields of 7,000–8,000 kg/hectare. The vineyards present an excellent balance between vegetation and fruit, so it is not necessary to adjust the crop load, and we only do minimum work on the canopy. This allows us to obtain well balanced and healthy grapes at harvest.
Casablanca is located 25 km from the coast, while Leyda is 15 km away, and Zapallar is 10 km away. Using fruit from these zones enables the wine to express tremendous freshness, minerality, and cold-climate typicity for the most elegant Chilean Pinot Noir. The soils in these areas are granitic and contain different amounts of clay which come from the Coastal Mountains and contribute elegance, creaminess, and a unique sensation to the wine.

HARVEST

This season was characterized by a winter with very low levels of precipitation across all the winemaking regions of Chile. The Aconcagua Valley was no exception, with scarce availability of water for irrigation (160 mm during the season), so we had to work diligently on the vigour
of the plants as well as their fruit yields, which was very important in order to reach our required ripeness indicators at harvest. Spring saw no frost of significance in our vineyards, and the summer was cool, as is the norm. Ripening was rather slow, which allowed us to conduct the harvest in a methodical and successful manner, with extremely detailed selection of sectors according to their levels of ripeness and flavour.

VINIFICATION

The grapes were hand-picked into 10-kg trays in the early hours of the morning to maintain the low temperatures and protect
the aromas. Once they reached the cellar, the bunches were carefully inspected and destemmed. Then the berries were selected.
The uncrushed grapes were then dropped directly into open-topped stainless steel tanks, where they were chilled at 8ºC for a
5-day cold maceration in order to gently extract the colour and aromas from the skins. The temperature was then allowed to
rise naturally to begin alcoholic fermentation, which lasted approximately 7 days at temperatures controlled between
23º–24ºC with 2 pump overs and punch downs per day for greater extraction and to keep the skins at the proper temperature
to facilitate the work of the yeasts.
Once the fermentation was complete, the wine was devatted and the skins were gently pressed. The pressed wine was only
partially used for greater complexity and volume to the nished wine. 30% of the wine was then stored in 225-litre French oak
barrels, where it underwent malolactic fermentation and remained there for 10–12 months. The wine was lightly ltered before
bottling.

TECHNICAL DATA

Denomination of Origin: Aconcagua Coast
Clone Selection: 777 – 667 – 115
Filtering: With 3- and 0.65-micron cartridge lters.
Vineyard Yields: 7–8 ton/ha (3–4 ton/acre)
Grape Variety: 100% Pinot Noir
Barrel Aging: 40% of the wine was aged in French oak barrels for 10-12 months.

BASIC ANALYSIS
Alcohol: 14%
pH: 3.47
Total Acidity (H2SO4): 3.7 g/L
Volatile Acidity (C2H4O2): 0.6 g/L
Residual Sugar: 2.95 g/L
Free SO2: 30 mg/L

SUGGESTIONS

Cellaring Recommendations: Store in a cool, dry place at no more than 15ºC and away from sources of light.
Recommended Serving Temperature: 14º–15º Celsius
Decanting: 15 minutes

Source: https://www.monteswines.com/en/wines/montes-alpha/pinot-noir