Wine Industry Report

Wines from 99 Chilean wineries will be judged at the 4th Annual Wines of Chile Awards, January 7th - 11th. From
Cabernet to Carmenere, Chile’s wines will be evaluated by nine of the top
wine educators, writers and consultants from the United States. This is the
first time the Awards panel will be comprised of U.S. wine experts. The
previous three years had wines judged by experts from the U.K.
“In recent years, investments in winemaking technology and a greater
understanding of the valleys and vineyards have advanced Chile’s
capabilities to create wines with impressive quality and durability. This
event provides an important opportunity for us to show the depth of variety
and quality of Chilean wines,” explains Ricardo Letelier, Managing
Director, Wines of Chile. “These awards also give our winemakers important
feedback on their wines and help gain insight on preferences and styles in
the U.S. market.
At this year’s Wines of Chile Awards, each participating winery can
submit up to six different wines to be judged. Wines eligible for this
year’s Awards retail from $10-15 or $15-25. Within these two price ranges,
wines will be broken down into 12 categories determined by varietal and
style. Judges will taste over 425 wines in these subcategories to determine
the top wines of Chile.
Judges will also participate in seminars on subjects pertinent to the
U.S wine market, Topics will include the Pinot Noir phenomenon in the U.S.
and what that could mean for Chilean wines as well as the perception of
Chilean wines in the U.S. market. In addition to tasting wines and
participating in seminars, the judges will be visiting several vineyards
and will take a helicopter ride over Casablanca and the Maipo River Valley.
The judging panel will include:

* Mary Ewing-Mulligan, M.W., President, International Wine Center

* Joshua Green, Editor-in-Chief, Wine & Spirits Magazine

* Ed McCarthy, Writer and Wine Consultant, Wines for Dummies

* Jay Miller, South American Wines Consultant, Robert Parker’s Wine
Advocate

* Bob Paulinski, M.W., Manager for Wine & Spirits, Sam’s Club US

* Josh Raynolds, Assistant Editor, Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine
Cellar

* Michael Schachner, Editor, Wine Enthusiast

* Bruce Schoenfeld, Wine and Spirits Editor, Travel & Leisure

* Darrin Siegfried, Owner, Red, White, & Bubbly

Results will be available online, http://www.winesofchile.org, on Tuesday,
January 16.

About Wines of Chile
Wines of Chile is a promotional body representing ninety Chilean
wineries with offices in Santiago, London and New York. It comprises the
members of two well-established associations: Vinas de Chile and Chilevid
and receives support from ProChile. Wines of Chile was founded in July of
2002 with the aim of combining efforts to position the image of Chilean
wine around the world through strategic marketing and promotional
activities.