Viña Leyda 'Canelo' Syrah 2014

***Bronze at the International Wine Challenge 2015***

Like an alpine orchid, this is a rare beauty from a vertiginous landscape, whose high altitude home and seemingly adverse conditions are the very thing that make it so beautiful, as the plant strives to survive and thrive.

Ee bah gum we’ve gone a bit Davey Attenborough haven’t we! What do we do? Oh yes, sell wine.

Ahem, well: this one has the signature cool-climate Syrah traits of black pepper, violets and tart red raspberry and blueberry overtones. A serious mountaineer.

The recently discovered Leyda Valley is located just 12km from the Pacific Ocean, making it a unique spot for viticulture. Its cool spring and summer, tempered by the maritime climate, make it an extraordinary area for the development of varieties such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Riesling.

The Canelo vineyard was planted in 2005, up the hill, on a west orientated slope on the Leyda Estate, searching for the best exposure to sunlight. The viticultural management is orientated towards lower yield production – around four to five tonnes/hectare.

Winemaker Viviana Navarrete joined as Viña Leyda’s Chief Winemaker in 2007. A high achiever in her year at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, she started working for Concha y Toro, doing her first her student practice, then for another four years as winemaker assistant for Ignacio Recabarren. At that time, she started to work closely with Leyda Valley wines, where she got involved with interesting new developments, specializing in the elaboration of premium white wines.

The grapes were hand harvested on May 1 and May 5. In the cellar, a careful cluster selection was made, on a stainless steel-vibrant sorting table. After de-stemming, the berries were softly crushed and transferred into stainless steel tank, at 8C, staying for six days of cold maceration.

Fermentation occurred at 27-28C, for six days, with a ‘punching down’ regime of four times a day. The wine was then racked into new and one-year-old, used French oak barrels for malolactic fermentation and aged for 14 months.

This is a unique and provocative Syrah, with a great sense of origin. It is a cold climate style of Syrah, with lots of spiciness, black pepper, floral notes (violets) and tart red fruit such as raspberries and blueberries. In the mouth it is fruit-driven, with a nice acidity that enlarges the juicy, fresh flavours. Soft tobacco, mocha notes and minerality reveal the maritime influence.