Monday, August 19, 2019

Maitia 2018 Weon Carignan, Maule Valley, Chile

IMG_20190817_194014What to pair with an eclectic assortment of Latin dishes? How about a Carignan from Chile.

Wine From The Dude

I swear I had no idea as the phrase came out of my mouth. We had been seated at our table at so.ca in Raleigh for a few minutes. It was long enough for our server to give us the menus and start perusing the wine list.

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As we were trying to unscramble the very delectable small and large plate offerings we were waiting for the server to return. Green Dragon asked if I had ordered wine. I replied, “I’m waiting for the dude to come back.” Little did I know that “dude” would play an important role in our meal.

I decided to go with the 2018 Weon Carignan from Chile. I thought the name was a bit odd, “Weon.” I later learned that in the Chilean culture, this means “dude” or “bro.” Conveniently, the word can be used as a noun or adjective. Whoa!

Pairing With The Plates

So.ca focuses on Latin cuisine and we began ordering a wide assortment of dishes to share and asked our server to pace them out. We ended with a continuous string of stunningly presented small plates that were delicioso.

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so.ca RaleighOur dishes included Ensalada de so.ca, Crab Stuffed Avocado, Dominican Empanadas, Jamaican Lamb Patties, Jerk Coconut Prawns, Argentinian Charred Pork Cheeks, and Guatemalan Ceviche de Camaron. Phew! You get the idea – plenty of amazing cuisine.

Carignan is a grape that is widespread in the south of France, used mostly in blends. In Spain, where it is called Cariñena, it is also popular.  It’s rare to see it as a single varietal bottling, so I jumped at the opportunity. The price point was also quite reasonable for such a unique wine.

Weon comes from Chile’s Maule Valley, one of the country’s larges wine growing regions. Reds are the specialty of the area. This is a light and limber red, not a big bombastic thing.

The Weon is soft with round tannins. It’s a young wine and harsh tannins are further avoided by fermentation in concrete vats, instead of oak. It is an organic wine and uses wild fermentation.

Weon is light and would do well with a slight chill to enjoy during the hot weather. It’s “redness” is beyond reproach, however, as it was a mind-blowing pairing with the Argentinian Charred Pork Cheeks served on amazing polenta. The wine is versatile and pairs adroitly with seafood and salad as well as spicy meats.

Dude! We highly recommend the Weon Carignan and so.ca for your drinking and dining enjoyment.

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