A couple months ago I hosted a Wine Blogging Wednesday about red wines from Chile and wine bloggers all over the world wrote about different Chilean wines.  One that caught my eye was an organic Pinot Noir from Cono Sur (Kevin, at Under the Grape Tree wrote that review).  Cono Sur made a number of reviews that day, and with good reason since they are one of the best producers from Chile when it comes to quality to price ratio.  And they are an innovative winery, producing a huge portfolio of different wines.

Cono Sur was established in 1993 and is part of the Concha y Toro wine group—a giant in Chilean wine.  Cono Sur is based in Colchagua Valley, but produces wine from all regions in Chile.

Occasionally when I mention Chilean wine to those who aren’t very familiar with it they say that they avoid it because of all the chemicals used in producing grapes in Chile.  I’m not sure where this perception comes from.  I’m not aware of any excessive use of agricultural chemicals in Chilean winemaking.  Regardless, I’m glad to see producers like Cono Sur bringing organically produced wines to the market as it helps change that perception of Chilean wine.  I’m sure that the fact that Wine Spectator gave a Chilean wine its top honors in 2008 also helps elevate the perception of Chilean wine.

Although this wine is part of the Cono Sur organic line, it’s not technically 100% organic—yet.  It is made from grapes in “conversion to organic” agriculture, as certified by BCS Oeko Garantie GmBH.  This is a designation given for a period of time when organic practices are first employed on land that was previously farmed with non-organic techniques.

I should note that if you go looking for this wine, look closely.  Cono Sur has at least five different Pinot Noir labels that they sell.  I haven’t tried the others yet, but I can tell you that this one is good.

Earth and fruit blend together to provide a dynamic nose to this wine.  On the earthy side there are notes of barnyard, moss and leather. The fruit brings cherry, strawberry and raspberry.  There’s a rather floral aroma as well. Obviously, there’s quite a bit going on here.  The palate is slightly off balance to the acid side, but I’d rather have too much acid than not enough… and it’s not excessively over acidic.  Flavor-wise it has lots of cherry, plus some cranberry and raspberry.  There’s quite a bit of heat on the finish.  This wine could use some refinement, but it’s not bad at all for the price.

Wine: Cono Sur – Organic
Varietal: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol: 13%
Rating: 87
Price: $9.49