Making a Place for Pais : Vinography

If I had to select the single most important and impactful trend in the world of wine, it would have to be the renewed focus on ancient and indigenous grape varieties around the world.

For millennia, cultures around the world have planted and selected wine grapes that matched their tastes, their climates, and their needs. These grape varieties not only represent an incredible living historical document of culture, but they also embody one of the most magical qualities of wine—its incredible diversity of flavors and textures.

The idea, postulated by some of the industry’s thought leaders, that the wine world should focus its attention on truly “noble” grapes that have been anointed by the (dominantly French) canon of “fine wine” has dominated the Western tradition of wine for far too long. Thousands of grape varieties have been lovingly bred or preserved by cultures around the world for reasons both delicious and practical, and thankfully the wine industry has begun to recognize anew how interesting, tasty, and useful these grapes can be.

The Explorer Grape

The sheer variety of wine grapes we have around the globe is a testament to two things: the movement of people and the fact that we like our booze. Throughout the course of human history, when people moved from place to place, they brought their families and their grapevines with them. This was true on journeys of migration, on journeys of exploration, and also on journeys of conquest.

When the Spanish sailed to the Canary Islands to colonize them in the 15th Century, they brought with them vine cuttings, among which was Listan Prieto, a hardy grape known to grow well in many different conditions and to produce enough sugar to easily be made into the sacramental wine so important to the Spaniards’ dominant Catholic faith.

After successful plantings in the Canaries, the grape continued to hitch a ride as Europeans “explored” the New World, landing first in the Dominican Republic and then Mexico.

“From there it sort of split,” says Master Sommelier Rebecca Fineman. “Some went north and some went south.”

“It was in the suitcases of all the missionaries,” Fineman explains. “They brought seeds with them to plant wherever they landed.”

Carried by padres and conquistadors south to Chile, Listan Prieto would become known as País, the humble grape whose name means at once “country,” “countryside,” “birthplace,” and simply “place.” In Argentina, they would name it Criolla Chica.

Other missionaries brought the grape north from Mexico into Baja California and up the west coast of North America as far north as Sonoma. Planted by the padres (or more likely their converted and/or conscripted laborers) at each established settlement, the grape became synonymous with these Missions to the point that it simply took on their name.

Regardless of whether it was called País or Mission or Criolla Chica or Listan Prieto, this grape’s ability to withstand varied climates and disease pressures while at the same time requiring low amounts of attention in order to thrive meant that it quickly became the dominant wine grape variety in North and South America.

The very first wines made in California were almost certainly made from Mission grapes, which continued to play an important role in the California wine industry into the 19th Century, when importation of the many “noble” grape varieties we know and love today signaled the end of the País era.

An Anniversary Tasting

Recently, the government of Chile decided to celebrate the 200th anniversary of diplomatic relations with the United States along with the 20th anniversary of the free trade agreement between the two countries. And what better way to celebrate than a wine-tasting event?

As part of this event, the organizers hired Rebecca Fineman to host a master class on the País grape. Fineman fell in love with País on a trip to Chile a number of years ago and at the organizers’ request, pulled together a group of wines from Chile and California to showcase what is currently being done with the grape in both places.

She chose some really excellent examples including some of my absolute favorite bottlings, starting with the Pais Salvaje (both red and white) from Bouchon winery in Chile’s Maule Valley.

In addition to being among the absolute best values for money in the world of wine (both under $25) these two bottlings are among the rarest and most interesting wines in the world. The red País Salvaje is made from wild vines estimated to be more than 120 years old that have grown up into trees. The white is a rare mutation of the same vines.

Driving around Maule and Itata, especially in the autumn, when the colors of the grape leaves clearly stand out against the surrounding forest landscape, you can see that there are wild País vines growing almost everywhere in this region of Chile. Birds and other animals grab the grapes and eat them, dropping seeds that take root and sprout throughout the forest.

In the case of Bouchon, a small tree-lined creek runs through their vineyards, and these wild vines sprouted there, next to an existing vineyard. They have never been pruned, sprayed, or otherwise touched by the human hand.

In 2015, the winery decided to try vinifying these grapes for the first time (requiring some very long ladders to harvest) and País Salvaje was born. The winery has since built a raised walkway through the forest surrounding this creek where, in 2019 I got to walk and marvel at the persistence of this ancient grape.

Fineman also selected some of my favorite California bottlings of Mission made by Tegan Passalacqua and Patrick Cappiello, as well as the very rare and hard-to-get-ahold-of natural wine from Raj Parr, Lone Wolf, made from an abandoned Temecula vineyard that he has nursed back to health.

I was very pleased to be introduced to the Roberto Henriquez “Santa Cruz de Coya” bottling, which is the first wine that Fineman tasted on her trip to Chile and one that began her love affair with the grape.

“I went to Chile expecting to taste a lot of Carménère, which I did,” says Fineman, “but I did not expect to taste something like this País, which changed my whole perception of Chilean wines in general.”

And then she found out it sold for less than $25 and her head exploded.

País or Mission, like so many of the more obscure, historical grapes from around the world, have been disregarded over time in favor of more glamorous, more well-known, more mainstream grapes which have not just supplanted, but quite literally re-planted them.

Rustic Elegance

País has long been dismissed as a clunky, rustic grape without much character or finesse. But I believe this is much more related to how poorly it has been treated over the years, and how often it was used to make high volumes of cheap wine. Like many so-called “lesser” varieties, when treated well, both in the vineyard and the cellar, with a mind towards making a fine wine, it has great potential.

Certainly the grape can sometimes have a slightly feral quality which, depending on your taste, may be less desirable. But I find this hint of rusticity quite charming, especially when it accompanies a wine that otherwise shows a lot of elegance. The red País Salvaje bottling from Bouchon is a perfect example of this combination of balance, juiciness, and just a hint of animality.

Producers like Sandlands prove that even this rusticity isn’t fully inherent in the grape, and that when handled expertly, the wine can be a beautifully floral, crunchy, refreshing light red wine with even the potential for a little aging. With wispy tannins, good acidity, and naturally low alcohol, País fits perfectly in the current wine zeitgeist.

With more boutique producers in both the northern and southern hemispheres beginning to discover and rehabilitate old vine plantings (as well as encouraging new plantings) it seems like País may finally have the chance to gain a modicum the respect, if not reverence, that it once commanded.

Tasting Notes

2022 Bouchon “País Salvaje Blanco” País, Maule, Chile
Pale gold in the glass, this wine smells of pears, citrus, and a hint of yellow plums. In the mouth, bright and juicy pear, citrus pith and peel, plus a hint of berry are all crisp and bright with excellent acidity. Made from a mutation of wild Pais that yields only white berries. Like its red cousin, this is made with fruit harvested from ancient wild vines growing in trees. 12% alcohol. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $24. click to buy.

NV Miguel Torres “Estelado” Sparkling Rosé of País, Secano Interior, Chile
Palest pink to the point of near colorlessness, with faint bubbles, this wine smells of strawberries and flowers. In the mouth, strawberries, sweet cream, confectioners sugar, and lightly bitter cranberry flavors. Faintly sweet. 4 g/l residual sugar. Certified Vegan. 12% alcohol. Score: between 8 and 8.5. Cost: $20. click to buy.

2022 Scribe “Sparkling” Mission, Sonoma Valley, Sonoma, California
Light garnet in the glass with medium bubbles. In the mouth, bright berry and flowers mix with a hint of herbs. In the mouth, sweetish berry and dried flowers mix with dried herbs amidst a very frothy mousse. A mix of whole cluster and destemmed fruit that spends 13 days on the skins before fermenting to dryness. Traditional method bottle fermentation. 12% alcohol. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $54. click to buy.

2022 Monte Rio “Somers Vineyard” Mission, Lodi, California
Light cloudy garnet with ruby highlights in the glass, this wine smells of sour cherry and dried herbs. In the mouth, dried herbs, red berries, and pulverized rocks have a faint chalky texture and a nice sour cherry finish. Good acidity. Powdery tannins. 100% whole cluster, with some carbonic maceration. 50-year-old vines. 11.5% alcohol. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $25. click to buy.

2022 Bouchon “Pais Salvaje” País, Maule Valley, Chile
Light garnet with ruby highlights in the glass and a faint haze, this wine smells of wet dog, dried herbs, dried flowers, and berries. In the mouth, sour cherry and raspberry flavors with dried herbs and wet earth. Sandpapery tannins. Excellent acidity. 12% alcohol. 30% whole cluster fermentation. Made from approximately 120-year-old vines growing wild in trees. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $22. click to buy.

2019 Sandlands Vineyards Mission, Amador County, California
Light garnet in the glass, this wine smells of dried flowers, berries, and citrus. In the mouth, smooth fine-grained tannins wrap around a core of sweet berries, dried flowers, and herbs. Head trained, dry-farmed, own-rooted, biodynamically farmed. 12.9% alcohol. Score: around 9. Cost: $47. click to buy.

2021 Dominio del Cuarzo País, Itata Valley, Chile
Light garnet in the glass, this wine smells of red berries, wet dog, and dried herbs. In the mouth, sweet red berries and herbs mix with dried flowers and citrus peel. Chalky grippy tannins. Stony. Planted in 1890. Dry farmed, organic, bush vines. 12.8% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $25. click to buy.

2019 A Los Vinateros Bravos “Volcanico” País, Itata Valley, Chile
Light to medium garnet in the glass, this wine smells of sweet berries and dried flowers. In the mouth, berries and flowers have a stony tight tannic texture and deep stony minerality. Excellent acidity. There’s a slightly animal quality to the wine that achieves a tension with the fruit that is intriguing. The vines are 150 to possibly 300 years old. Minimal sulfur and dry farmed. Score: around 9. Cost: $18. click to buy.

2022 Scythian Wine Company “Lone Wolf” Mission, Temecula, California
Pale hazy ruby in the glass, this wine smells of acidophilus and berries and herbs. In the mouth, that yogurty quality continues with berries and herbs. Definitely on the natural end of the spectrum. Good acidity. Planted in 1896, abandoned after prohibition. Destemmed, aged in old oak. Organic, dry farmed. No sulfur. 12% alcohol. Score: between 8 and 8.5. Cost: $??

2020 Roberto Henriquez “Santa Cruz de Coya” País, Bio Bio, Secano Interior, Chile
Medium hazy ruby in the glass, this wine smells of redcurrants, raspberries, and dried flowers. In the mouth, bright raspberries and redcurrant fruit have an almost searing acidity, which leans ultimately volatile. Lightly cottony tannins flex muscles over time. Lots of pulverized stone here. 200 year old, bush-trained vines. 12.5% alcohol. Score: around 9. Cost: $27. click to buy.