Monk Itata Cinsault

Pale ruby; medium plus intensity aromas of raspberry, red apple, red currant, rose hips, cellar; dry, medium plus acid, medium minus tannins, medium alcohol, medium body, medium plus intensity flavors consistent with aromas; a bit more musty than the Trane

Cedar, dusty earth, dried herbs, strawberry and raspberry, all wrapped in a gauze of rock dust and pulverized dried flowers. Amazing acidity and a faint saltiness in the finish. 100+ year old Cinsault bush vines from the nooks and crannies of Itata. Dr. Terroir (soil geologist Pedro Parra) is putting his terroir where his mouth is. Roughly 30% whole cluster, but 100% delicious.

I’m starting to think that the Pedro Parra style might be easy drinking juicy fruity light wines but to be fair, I’ve only tried two of his wines. This wine was juicy mixed fruit (like the fruit cartons you had as a kid) BUT with a larger quantity of strawberry than any other fruit and a noticeable Pinot Noir-like earthiness (this is a 100% Cinsault). Structurally, its super light body, medium acidy, low tannin. The fruit starts to dissipate quickly and the strawberry is mostly on the nose. This wine shares a lot with Pedro Parra’s Vinista Pais (also from Itata) - both have that base of kid’s mixed fruit juice and are structurally similar.