The exacting standards applied in Chile are drawn from the company’s experience in France. Parcel selection and the art of blending, key to the success of Baron Philippe de Rothschild wines, are also used in Chile.
The grapes are monitored regularly as they ripen, block by block, in accordance with a precise protocol established by Emmanuel Riffaud. It enables the winemakers to determine the optimum harvest date for each parcel or block corresponding to a meticulous selection of micro-terroirs.
The grapes are harvested by hand in 10 or 18 kg crates then taken to the bodega.
Cold soaking before fermentation helps to extract all the grapes’ rich aromas and flavours. Alcoholic fermentation takes place at controlled temperatures that do not exceed 28° C in order to preserve the freshness of the fruit and ensure the smooth transformation of sugars into alcohol, a process which takes eight to ten days.
The wine is then kept at a temperature of 28-30° C during the post-fermentation maceration period, which lasts around three weeks.
Baron Philippe de Rothschild Chile’s winemakers taste each batch daily during the vinification process in order to adjust the level of extraction of each vat. In doing so, they create a customised programme designed to reveal the purest expression of the fruit while seeking an elegant, integrated tannic structure.
Depending on the results of the tastings, the batches are matured in vats or barrels