Ep 438: The Grape Miniseries -- País

<p>País, known as Criolla Chica in Argentina, and Mission in the US,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span> was brought by the Spanish conquistadores and was South America’s most planted grape for centuries until an economic boom in Chile and waves of migration in Argentina brought new and interesting grapes to these nations. Argentina has plantings of the grape, California now barely any, so Chile is the epicenter of the grape, where it is thought of as the locals’ grape – something low quality and common that has been around forever but has never made more than cheap, bulk wine or wine for local consumption.<span class= "Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style= "display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src= "https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/45638/50356109033_e683e03025_w.jpg" alt="" width="400" height="255" /><span style= "font-size: 8pt;">País (a.k.a., Criolla Chica or Mission), "<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/55246793@N04/50356109033" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mission Grapes</a>" by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/55246793@N04" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hey Fritters</a> is licensed under <a href= "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/?ref=openverse" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>.</span></p> <p> </p> <p>But in 2007, the 200+ year old vines caught the attention of Europeans who were making wine in Chile and they began experimenting. The grape was made into sparkling wine and then into funky natural wines, which gained a following in France and in the capital city of Chile, Santiago. Today, there is revived interest in this grape, and it is making everything from Beaujolais Nouveau-like styles to some more complex, spicy, herbal yet fruit wines with great tannins and acidity. In this episode we explore the origins of this grape and what makes it so fascinating.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p> <p> </p> <p>Here are the show notes:</p> <ul> <li>We discu