Almost every profession has a patron saint. Some are just plain weird: Adrian of Nicomedia (arms dealers), Barbara (firework makers), Michael the Archangel (supermarket workers), Honorius of Amiens (pastry chefs), and Elmo (chimney sweeps). Winemakers get Vincent of Saragossa and winegrowers get Theobold of Provins, but there isn’t one for wine merchants (cue sorrowful ‘ahhhh’). But here at Oddbins, when we tasted the gloriousness of this herby, lusciously fruity Chilean Sauvignon Blanc, we knew we’d found Santa Carolina; the patron saints of wine merchants.
Viña Santa Carolina’s Specialities Range is made up of wines from newly discovered terroirs in Chile. Santa Carolina was founded in 1875 and is amongst the oldest wineries in Chile. The awards started with a gold in 1889 for their Reserva de Familia at the Expostion Universelle de France, which was the first Chilean wine to be recognised at an international level.
Santa Carolina operate a concept of “Herencia Viva”, or “living legacy”. They do this by representing the past, present and future, i.e. learning from the founders and inspiring the new partners. The team have bags of experience working all over Chile and even at Rosemount Estate in Australia.
All grapes are hand-harvested, bunches are hand-selected in the vineyard and are then cold macerated before being fermented in stainless steel. This wine is left on the lees for a month to impart a smooth texture.
The result is a wine with a pale yellow colour, intense and fruity aromas and citrus, fennel and herbs on the palate. The finish is mineral with crisp acidity and graceful lemongrass and thyme. This works really well with fish, seafood and spicy Asian food.
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