Anyone who has watched an Indiana Jones movie would relate to feeling thoroughly invigorated by the adventurousness and daring of the lead action star Jones who would run through ancient temples and traverse through far off jungles - it all just feels so larger than life!

And just like in Raiders of the Lost Ark, our adventurous hero today can be found in the canopies of South America, except this time we're in Chile.

Montes Wines has been heralded as a pioneer in helping to not just elevate the country's then burgeoning wine scene, but has also established without a doubt that Chile is able to produce some incredible wines. It is a story built upon upturning traditional ideas on winemaking, through its discovery of the once thought to be impossible Apalta slopes, to bringing new viticulture practices to the country, and in turn showing the world that Chile too is able to produce top quality international and local wine cuvees.

Meet Indiana Jones,... Or Rather Aurelio Montes

The winery comes from a collection of four founders - first by Aurelio Montes (for whom the winery is named after) and Douglas Murray, and who were later joined by Alfredo Vidaurre and Pedro Grand. "I wasn't able to do it by myself. I invited three other partners and at the end we were four friends, partners, each one covering a different part of the business. I always think four winemakers wouldn't have made it. It was a winemaker, a marketing man, an engineer, and a guy who was in charge of finance. Each of us covered a different part of the whole business." says Montes.

Aurelio Montes in particular, who is also the face of the winery, is our said adventurer that would not be too far off from a sort of real life Indiana Jones. Montes despite being in his mid-70's, spends his time sailing, flying planes, horseback riding, and of course watching over Montes' breathtaking vineyards. "I’m still involved in the tastings with the whole team, including my son, so retirement I will say ‘no way’. I will say that retirement for a human being is the beginning of the end. When you sit at home with nothing to do, when you have an empty agenda for a day, it’s terrible. I just go crazy... I just have to look for something." admits Montes.

Aurelio Montes with his three partners, Douglas, Alfredo and Pedro.

And thus it was Montes who had first kickstarted - quite literally with little to no financial backing whatsoever, and till this day 100% proudly Chilean owned - the Montes story. It was the late 1980's and Chile was just beginning to export its wines internationally, Montes had by then graduated from the prestigious Catholic University with a degree in Oenology, and had already racked up considerable and crucial experiences in a smaller family-owned vineyard at Vina Undurraga, where he got to travel abroad to learn winemaking techniques in Germany, as well as served as the place where Montes got to gain firsthand experiences experimenting with various viniculture practices. However, it was when he got to the much larger Vina San Pedro, which at the time was one of the major four wineries in Chile, where Montes was able to assemble his team. He would first pull over Murray, who had been largely responsible for taking it upon himself to market Chilean wines abroad, nicknaming himself "Guardian of the Spirit"; subsequently he was to bring over Alfredo and Pedro, who were both also key figures in Vina San Pedro.

Apalta vineyards.

The Discovery Of Apalta Sparks A Chilean Revolution

Together they would begin to work on bringing the Montes winery to life - this would be 1987. Initially the idea was to create something of a retirement vineyard where by the end of their careers, the four men could have something to work on, yet quickly Montes would figure that they were on to something when he had realised that there was an opportunity to fill the gap then for premium high quality Chilean wines. Up till that point, winemakers in Chile were simply taught to make table wines, yet Montes had in his early adulthood chanced upon the bowl-shaped Apalta area (in Colchagua Valley) which he had fallen in love with, and even as he had set about putting Montes winery in motion, the area had remained untouched - Montes knew that this was the place for Montes to get started. Yet the Apalta area was untouched for good reason - it was characterised by steep 45 degree slopes that were incredibly difficult to plant upon.

Yet Montes was convinced that these steep slopes would produce better fruit as there was better control over irrigation and vine nutrition. Together with his partners, Montes began to clear the slopes filled with stones, rocks, bushes and tree trunks at great cost, with proper planting starting in 1989 - everyone else in Chile's wine scene then simply thought Montes was foolish and would have done better to heed conventional practice of planting on the flat valley floors instead. It was at Apalta that Montes' revolutionary cuvees Montes Alpha M, Purple Angel and Folly were create created.

The Montes winery in Apalta.

Terroir Is One Thing; Importing The Right Practices Into Chile Just As Important

But it wasn't just a matter of finding the right terroir, Montes had also brought to Chile many practices that might be well understood today as necessary for producing great wines, yet at the time were foreign to the South American country. Montes would severely reduce yield levels, and would also bring over international grape varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Chardonnay, with quality clones brought over from France. Montes had found that local vines were over-used and over-produced and had begun to embed in them poor health and thus he had committed to flying over fresh ones to refresh the vineyard's viticulture. He would also plant his vineyards to high density, all of which serving to concentrate and intensify the flavours of the fruit produced.

In 1996, Montes would strike its first big hit - the Montes Alpha M was a classic Bordeaux blend that seriously put Chile on the map. 2000 would see the release of a Syrah dominated Montes Folly - Montes the first to plant Syrah in the Colchagua Valley, showing that Chile had the right conditions to produce great Syrah. In 2005, a Carmenere forward expression Purple Angel became Montes' third icon wine, with the grape varietal informally known as Chile's local grape, this was an homage to their home country. Yet Montes knew it wasn't enough to simply produce great wines, more had to be done to change the image of Chile's winemaking reputation internationally; Montes was one of the first winemakers from Chile to himself go on the road and showcase his wines, whereas most of his peers had much preferred to stay in labs and in the cellars.

Montes Might Have Been Born In Chile, But It Can't Be Contained To Chile

With the success of Apalta, Montes would begin to go in search of new alternative locations. It was often thought that many of Chile's sites were not conducive for winemaking, yet Apalta had flipped it on its head and proven otherwise - this created a gold rush for winemakers to rethink previously discarded areas. Montes would open up new vineyards along the Aconcagua Coast with first the Zapallar Vineyard - the winery was placed just 7 kilometres from the Pacific Ocean and featured a much cooler climate which were beneficial as well for white varietals such as Chardonnay. In 2017, whilst Montes was sailing around Chile in his boat, he had come across the Chiloé Archipelago, 1,200 kms south of Santiago, this piqued his curiously as to whether an island would be a potentially promising winemaking terroir - and thus began Montes' more recent experiments with growing Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, and even Gewuztraminer on the little island of Mechuque in Patagonia (which also happens to have the latitude as Tasmania).

Aurelio Montes, a real life adventurer.

Montes has even since expanded its reach to neighbouring Argentina (producing the brand Kaiken) and as far as Napa Valley, California, US. "At some point, after 15 years of Montes, we had already established a brand in the market which was quite unique. We felt that we were quite consolidated here, but we still had energy to burn. We wanted to do something else. Chile was covered, so the natural first step was to move to Argentina which is next door. Then after four or five years that we started in Argentina, I felt that we still needed to do something else to prove to the world and prove to ourselves that we could do wine anywhere. Napa is kind of a cathedral of the New World quality wines, and we wanted to be side by side with the Mondavis, with Francis Ford Coppola, with all these trendy names, the Screaming Eagles and the Harlans and so on, and prove ourselves to the world that we could do good wines there, and we did it." says Montes.

Dry Farming In A Latest Development

Amongst one of the latest developments that Montes has also brought to its vineyards in Chile is the use of dry farming - reducing significantly the amount of irrigation to the vineyards. What started out as simply a desire to conserve water that Montes believed ought to go towards human consumption, has in fact proven that despite allowing the vineyards to go without irrigation, the vines have adapted to dig deeper in the subsoil to produce more concentrated and better fruit. This has allowed Montes to save the equivalent of 3,000 cubic meters of water per hectare - or the drinking needs of 20,000 people per year!

Artist Ralph Steadman is behind the labels of several of Montes' cuvees.

A final fun fact is that if you're a literary fan, you might find a similarity in some of Montes' wine labels to the cover of several Hunter S. Thompson novels (such as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas) - and that's because the winery had struck up a friendship with illustration Ralph Steadman who was the illustrator for a key Montes client, and thus when Steadman was sent to Chile to observe the Montes vineyards, the winery had thought to just as well have Steadman help design the art for some of its labels!

And with that said, today we're going to try several notable Montes wines, which of course we've got to cover the four Montes icons - Alpha M (Bordeaux style), Folly (100% Syrah), Purple Angel (Carmenere) and Muse (100% Cabernet Sauvignon); followed by two whites from the winery as well - the Alpha Special Cuvee Chardonnay and Outer Limits Sauvignon Blanc.

Let's go!

Wine Review: 2019 Montes Alpha M

The Montes Alpha M is without a doubt what Montes is best known for. It's named Alpha M in honour of Montes's partner Douglas Murray, who is today no longer with us, and thus Aurelio Montes has taken on the helm of "Guardian of the Spirit". Murray was a charismatic man who took it upon himself to be the international ambassador for Chilean wines to the international community, and even managed to bring the Chinese traditional art of Feng Shui to Montes' vineyards.

The Alpha M comes wholly from the Apalta vineyards in the Colchagua Valley, where the soils are deep and features lots of granite that are fluvial and glacial. It is said to be strongly influenced by the nearby Tinguiririca River that has eroded parts of the mountain ranges. This is produced in the style of a classic French Bordeaux blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. Interestingly the fruit bunches are naturally "crushed" with gravity as they fall into the tanks below. It is racked into French oak barrels (70% first use French oak) where it sits for 18 months.

Tasting Notes 

Colour: Garnet 

Aroma: It opens with a combination of bright and dark berries, with raspberry jam and mulberries. It's rather chewy, with more on black licorice and berry gummies. It's got a moderate richness and depth that's already fairly vibrant. A really good concentration and focus here of the fruits that would open up more with age. Really lovely aromatics here.

Taste: Really nice set of richness, it's medium plus bodied, really juicy with just a gentle sweetness. It's giving lots of firm blackberry gummies, and black licorice. That concentration and focus really carries through, it has a really well bounded core of those darker fruits, that again feels like it could open up and develop somemore.

Finish: Light tobacco, with a continuation of that blackberry juiciness and some more black licorice. It's a moderately long finish with the richness and concentration powering through, with no loss of richness at all.

My Thoughts

This was really lovely, with that richer, fuller body that was also juicy and incredibly aromatic. Perhaps what impressed most here is how it held on to that concentration of fruit, from the aromas to the finish, there was not one bit of loss of focus and firmness of that core of fruit - it never ever thinned out or broke apart. It's also wrapped around by a chewy bit of black licorice, that altogether gave it a cohesive and well-bounded structure. Really enjoyed that chewy texture as well, it felt like fruit pastilles and gummies! That said, I feel like we're only at the start, this feels like it could take on a couple more years of ageing to really open up, which I suspect would be a lot more perfumed and relaxed.

Wine Review: 2019 Montes Folly

Now we come to the Montes Folly, this was the first Syrah of its time in the Colchagua Valley! It's 100% Syrah and is aged in 70% first use French oak barrels for 18 months. It shares much of the same terroir as is the case with the Alpha M. Though what you'll notice on the label is the artistic work of Ralph Steadman, the same artist behind famed literary writer Hunter S. Thompson novel covers such as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Dark Ruby 

Aroma: Wow! Really fresh here and superbly aromatic! It's got some earth to it, with some tobacco leaf and cloves. Beneath which is filled in with raspberries and blackberries by the heap. It's big and bold, with great firmness and intensity, creating a really rustic perfumery quality to it. 

Taste: It's sweeter here, there's still that earthiness of browned leaves and cloves. This time the raspberry jams take the fore. It's rich with a velvety plushness. It's got depth and is elegant and silky without any of this heaviness despite its fuller body. It has a fresh brightness to its richness that gives it a lifted brilliance.

Finish: A nice twist of tension here with some dryness, that said the tannins here are so soft it's barely noticeable. It continues on with raspberry jams, this gentle firmness reinforcing its bolder, more masculine structure. It keeps with the freshness as well, with a persistence of red berry juices into the finish. 

My Thoughts

This was simply fantastic - if you like that rustic purity of earthiness and red fruit, this one's perfect for you. It's classic Syrah although here it has a notable added elegance to it, it's not overly flabby and jammy, with a bright and lifted richness that gives a great contrast to the darker, more decadent body. In that sense it keeps its structure, filled in with richness and fullness, yet does not feel heavy in the slightest. I call that brilliance!

On top of that perfumed, fresh and energetic bouquet on the nose, which was completely evocative, spiced and earthy, it also carries with it on the finish this twist of tension where there's some dryness to hold up against the fuller richness of the body, yet surprisingly the tannins were so soft they could barely be felt. This is Syrah perfection. It's bold, intense, full, yet elegant, lifted and brilliant.

Wine Review: 2020 Montes Purple Angel

Now we come to the third of Montes' icon wines, this is the Purple Angel that's a Carmenere forward cuvee. There's always been talk of Carmenere being the poster child (grape) for Chile, and so it's great that Montes has given us their interpretation of a Carmenere expression. A fun fact here is that Carmenere was once found in Bordeaux, and in fact was heavily planted in the French vineyards, and it was until just over a hundred years that the grape varietal has become popular in Chile.

This is 92% Carmenere and 8% Petit Verdot, with 70% of the wine aged for 18 months in first use French oak barrels.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Dark Ruby 

Aroma: This opens up to blueberry jams and black licorice. It features that chewiness to it, with a moderate richness and density. Great concentration of the fruit at the core, it's very focused and well-bounded. It's very aromatic and blueberry forward, with more on blueberry pastilles and fruit leather. With some age this should open up some more, with a bigger and more perfumed bouquet. Very promising so far.

Taste: A good richness and concentration here. It's rich and filled with blackberry and raspberry jams. There's some earthiness wrapping around it with a light touch of tobacco and leather. It's got quite some depth here, with just a gentle sweetness. Once again, some age should open this right up. 

Finish: A gentle dryness. The darker berries of blackcurrant and blackberries push forth in the form of decadent juices. The tannins are alittle more grainy here, and therefore more prominent, yet nothing that would throw it off. 

My Thoughts

A very lovely Carmenere here - on the nose is whether it differs most, giving more of a blueberry character, as opposed to red or black fruits. It shares much of the same DNA as the Montes Alpha M in that it's big and bold, great concentration, also very well-bounded, giving it a chewiness at the moment, however it's clear that with age this should loosen up and offer a beautiful and relaxed richness. The fruit is certainly all there with great intensity. It has a nice earthiness that also envelops it that is a great contrast to the darker fruits on the body. At times I almost feel like I'm getting dark chocolate, and so I suspect that might be right around the corner. It's alittle more grainy for its tannins though that should too loosen up with time.

It has great structure and precision, it's rich without being flabby, yet is nowhere austere or overly lean. A very well-expressed local variety that has been held up to the same Bordeaux standards of the Alpha M. 

Wine Review: 2020 Montes Muse

The fourth Montes icon we'll have for today is the Montes Muse. "Going back to my beginnings, I wanted to pay tribute to all the women in my family who have helped me become who I am. Inspired by these important figures in my life, I decided to make a wine for them. A very significant wine. An inspirational wine made for celebration. This, then, is a wine inspired by my muses, in which I have looked to create supreme elegance and subtle distinction" says Aurelio Montes.

This is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, and unlike the three Apalta Aconcagua wines before it, this comes from the more familiar Maipo Valley that most wine lovers should be familiar with. Similarly, it's 70% aged for 18 months in first use French oak barrels.

Tasting Notes 

Colour: Dark Ruby 

Aroma: This leans darker, with more on blackberries and cassis. There's a lighter leafy quality about it of mulberry leaves and curry leaves, with alittle spiced hit of cumin as well. The curry leaf leads, with the blackberry at the base. It's still alittle closed off here, yet it does feel concentrated at its core. 

Taste: Definitely richer here, with bramble notes of blackberries, raspberries, in the form of jams and compote. It's medium-bodied, well-structured with solid detailing, and also rather vibrant. It comes off brighter than it was on the nose. 

Finish: Clean here, with alittle bit more on the firm and grainy tannins - this should loosen up with time. More raspberries into the finish.

My Thoughts

This is leaner, certainly more structured, yet keeps its concentration and intensity. It has a heavy focus on those classic blackberry and cassis qualities, there's some lighter red fruits too, and interestingly a spiced quality on the nose with some curry leaves and cumin. This is probably the leanest and more detailed of the wines thus far, which whilst might forgo some approachability and drinkability, definitely pounds up in terms of precision. It'll be very interesting to see how this opens up in the coming years - the concentration and structure is there, so I have no doubts it will open up just as nicely, though now it's still pretty young and tight. 

Wine Review: 2021 Montes Alpha Special Cuvee Chardonnay

And so we're now headed to the Zapallar estate that sides by the Aconcagua Coast! This was yet another big move by the Montes team to begin turning coastal estates into wine growing regions, once again proving that it was possible in a big shocker to Chilean winemakers. This sits just 7km from the Pacific Ocean, which thus offers a much cooler climate that supports the production of white varietals. Yields are controlled here, with less of that high altitude, high density farming done here as it is in Apalta.

This is 100% Chardonnay that has 50% of it aged for 12 months in French oak barrels.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Straw

Aroma: Creamy here, it's soft and supple of lemon curds, with very little acidity on the nose. It's backed by a good amount of cream, along with some light pears, gooseberry jam, green apples. It's very green yet not all that tart. There's some minerality of clay and flint that rounds it out. Great cohesiveness and roundedness.

Taste: Richer here, it's medium bodied yet feels fuller. It's gently sweet of cream and green pears. It retains that rich and creamy texture that's very enjoyable on the palate.

Finish: The creaminess persists, here joined by a very light tartness. It feels more creamy and fuller bodied into the finish, with just a gentle note of flint. 

My Thoughts

A very enjoyable, riper and fuller bodied Chardonnay here. It's not particularly musky, with a pronounced richness and creaminess that's very enjoyable. It leans sweeter and is chock full of those green fruits of apples, pears, gooseberries. There's just the slightest hit of acidity with some lemon curds coming through. It's really supple, without any of that zippiness or tartness. I particularly liked how that creaminess carries through into the finish, mellow yet concentrated and powerful. There's a gentle bit of that minerality and clay that rounds it out and give it just the slightest bit of austerity against all that richness, which in turn comes off as ensuring there's still some structure to be had here.  

Wine Review: 2023 Montes Outer Limits Sauvignon Blanc

Next up from Zapallar is Montes' Outer Limits Sauvignon Blanc. This is 100% Sauvignon Blanc that's unaged.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Light Tint

Aroma: This leans brighter, with quite a pronounced muskiness to it. It's giving tropical white fruits of langsat, mangosteens and longans, as well as yellow and green fruits of jackfruit, kiwi and eggfruit. There's a greenness to it, along with some acidity. Rather funky stuff.

Taste: Sweeter still, there's still that musky quality to it but far more subtle here on the palate. There's still the same langsat, longans, mangosteens, along with some jackfruits too. It's still got that green quality to it, yet here it's much more creamy and rich, with very little acidity. 

Finish: More on gooseberries, raising the acidity alittle, yet overall a very absent tartness. The rich creaminess persists into the finish.

My Thoughts

As is classic Sauvignon Blanc, this is much more musky and zippy, giving loads of those tropical white, yellow and green fruits that are considerably more funky and bring with them much more acidity. Yet it does possess a sort of richness to it that balances it out with some sweetness and keeps it from ever getting noticeably tart. It's overall really green, but once again definitely has a riper quality to it that's giving alot of richness. That said, it is still a funky one.  

Kanpai!

@111hotpot