Calix Ltda. Primor 2007. 90 pts. And UN-Googleability is a good thing!

Hey everybody,

I realize that I'm known as "The Ocean's Premier Wine Expert", but sometimes that's more than even I can live up to. I mean wow, what pressure! There's an awful lot of wine out there and I'm only one shark. Sometimes I get stumped, ok? But being stumped can also lead to the joy of discovery- something that is increasingly hard to find.

Last week, I was following a school of tuna along the chilly Humbolt current all the way down to beautiful central Chile where I met up with my old pal Fernando. He's a Combtooth Dogfish shark, which is to say he's an antisocial hermit who spends most of his time near the ocean floor. Good guy though if you know him like I do. We used to call him "Stretch" back in the old days.

Fernando, like me, has an unusual enthusiasm for wine and has turned me on to many great South American producers over the years. During this visit, we spent a few days gorging ourselves on fatty tuna, albacore, and of course Chilean sea bass. As a parting gift, Fernando gave me a bottle of red wine called "Primor" from the Aconcagua Valley just north of Casablanca. It's an '07 vintage and bottled by somebody called Calix Ltda, whom I've never heard of and despite several Google searches, cannot track down anywhere on the internet. Fernando wasn't much help either; he got a couple of bottles at his local wine shop out of curiosity and being the shy loser he is, didn't ask any questions.

All I know about this wine's background is what's printed on the label, which tells me that it is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot. No idea what percentages nor any info about oak treatment. I forgot to even ask how much he paid for the bottle.

Now I found this lack of background info to be exciting, and it was a rare feeling in this age of on-demand information. I had no expectations and the wine had nothing to live up to. My only criteria for reviewing this wine was my own pure enjoyment (or lack) of it.

Tonight my wife and I were eating some children and decided to give the "Primor" a whirl. It poured out a deep red/not quite purplish color. Immediately I caught the aromas of just-baked cherry pie, dark berry fruit and a touch of vanilla cream. The palate was quite consistent with the nose, with medium tannins and a very refreshing race of acidity towards the finish. VERY good stuff, quite food-friendly, and I'd predict that this would drink well for the next 2-4 years.

I called up Fernando (...not a cheap call) because I just had to know how much he paid for this bottle. When he replied $10,000 pesos, (about 10 dollars) I almost shit the bed! I know a lot of you snobs out there won't even look in Chile's direction, but I'm telling you this is where it's at for budget wines. And give these vines 30 more years and I think they will rival the finest Pomerol, which will likely all burn up in a human-related nuclear holocaust by then anyway...

Anyway, Calix Ltda Primor 2007. It's a Chilean Bordeaux blend. If you can find it, it's fabulous and cheap. Let me know if you know anything else about it. I would include a photo of the label, but apparently there are none online and digital cameras don't work well at this depth.

Cheers!
-Robert Sharker