Wine with Leslie: The three wines from Chile making their debut in Ireland

The wines are only just in the market and I like what I’ve tasted so far.

Fri, 28 Nov, 2025 - 01:00

My first memory of tasting Chilean wine was in around 1990 in the Atrium of Trinity College at a reception to celebrate the opening of the Finnish embassy.

I have no idea how I crashed this party given that I was studying English and philosophy and had no diplomatic connections, but somehow myself and a few others found ourselves eating pea soup and drinking shots of Finlandia vodka from bottles encased in three inches of ice.

They were also serving ripe juicy Los Vascos Cabernet Sauvignon (O’Briens €17.99) from Chile, and somehow I knew that the wine was likely from ungrafted vines (Chile has never had phylloxera). Even I find it weird that I can remember such details, but it was a fun party.

Chilean wine is still made from ungrafted vines; they root and produce grapes quicker than vines grafted on American root stock and could be argued have a closer connection with the terroir (or maybe that’s just the romantic in me).

O’Briens recently had a fascinating tasting of all the vintages of Tayu 1865 Pinot Noir from the Malleco Valley in Patagonia, the oldest being 2018. Malleco is one of the most southerly wine regions in Chile and each of the two-hectare plots is managed by an indigenous Mapuche family, the original inhabitants of Patagonia. This is a cold region so frost is often a problem but San Pedro/1865 has stuck with it. The wines all showed beautifully with red fruits, elegance and savoury touches.

Squid Inc is another Chilean brand you likely haven’t heard about, the creation of singer-songwriter Chris Haze, who joins a long line of musicians with their own wine brand. The wines are only just in the market and I like what I’ve tasted so far. The three wines below are making their debut.

Tayu 1865 Pinot Noir, Malleco Valley 2024, Patagonia, Chile, €22.99

Cool climate Pinot Noir is always interesting and I love that San Pedro/1865 wines have teamed up with indigenous families to grow their grapes and invested in the community.

Cherry, pomegranate and red berry aromas, ripe fruit-focused palate but with a pleasing savoury richness and pleasing grip and freshness on the finish. Who says Pinot has to come from Burgundy?

O’Briens; obrienswine.ie

Squid Inc. Cabernet Sauvignon, Maule, Chile €16.99-18.99

Galway singer-songwriter Chris Haze teamed up with Miraflores in Chile to make this tasty Cabernet (a Pinot Noir is due soon).

From a dry farmed organic vineyard in Maule in the Central Valley, aromas of ripe black fruits tinged with high cacao chocolate, good weight and depth, cedar-vanilla notes, and a pleasing freshness on the finish.

Jaynes Off-Licence Ennis; On The Grapevine Dalkey

Volcanico País, A Los Vinateros Bravos, Itata Valley, Chile €26-27

From 100+ year old organic País vines (likely off-cuts of those first planted in the 1550s) grown on volcanic granitic soil in Itata far south of the Central Valley.

Bright juicy red and dark fruits, grippy and fresh tasting with lively berry flavours, balancing acidity, a streak of minerality and gorgeous drinkability.

L’Atitude 51; JJ O’Driscolls; Mannings Emporium; Mitchell & Son; LeCaveau.ie

Beer of the week: The Still Hand Barleywine, Wicklow Wolf & Glendalough Distillery, 13% ABV, 440ml €8

A collab between the two great Wicklow drinks companies, the ones I mention most often. A limited edition barleywine aged in oloroso casks from Glendalough’s Double-Barrel Whiskey.

Pouring a dark amber with aromas of burnt caramel, treacle cake and spice. On the palate are warming flavours of fruitcake, Christmas pudding and sweet oak, with background whiskey notes. Layered, complex and delicious.