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Well for starters their name. A Kaiken is a South American goose which flies over the Andes, traversing the lands between Chile and Argentina. This is why the folks at Montes, a well respected Chilean winery, chose this name for their Argentinean project. The idea was to take the world class grapes of Argentina and couple it with the experience of both Chilean and Argentinean winemakers to produce praise-worthy wines at reasonable prices. The verdict? Success!

Montes Alpha Merlot, 2003, Apalta Valley, Chile

As New World wines garner more and more popularity, they also inevitably become more and more expensive. Over the last ten years quality Australian wines, which used to be a bargain, are now priced comparably to similar French and California wines. There are some deals to be found in Europe, but for the most part, with French, German and Italian wines, you get what you pay for. In fact, world wide, it seems like you’re always getting what you pay for. Well I think we should get more than what we pay for. That’s where South America comes in…

Largely influenced by the Bordeaux varietals, respected producers world wide have invested in South American vineyards, perhaps most notably Chilean properties. With California producers like Robert Mondavi, Franciscan and Kendall-Jackson, and French powerhouses like Chateau Mouton-Rothschild and Lafite Rothschild, it seems likely that finding excellent values out of Chile may soon be a thing of the past. Hence, we must all exploit the situation while it is at hand. A great place to start would be Montes’ wines from Colchagua Valley, particularly their Alpha series.

The Alpha series merlot is rich and full, though velvety on the palate, just as merlot should be. Initially the nose is jammy, with lots of cooked fruit like black currant preserves, followed by roasted coffee as a secondary aroma. The earth is largely apparent on the palate, but well balanced by dark fruits like cassis and blackberry. Mineral and graphite give way to cocoa on the finish which is long and robust. Very accessible now, though it grows in the glass, and will certainly cellar well for at least five years.

For pairing, try grilled meats to accentuate the smoky tannins derived from the 15% of cabernet this wine carries. A greasy cheeseburger with fresh veggies sounds good to me. Other options are meaty pastas and heavy cheeses. Even rich, chocolate desserts followed by a fat cigar could be nice.

This bottle retails for about $20, but I wouldn’t expect it to stay so inexpensive for long. The long Chilean growing season, which is opposite from that of Europe and North America, stretches from November to April. Perfectly clear air and clean mountain snow, which melts to feed the Tinguiririca River and the Colchagua Valley vineyards, combine with Pacific maritime breezes and the rich loam clay and loam silt soil to create a brilliant terroir and in turn gorgeous wines. Experts have certainly begun to take notice, with Chilean wine rating high on such prestigious lists as Wine Spectators Top 100. All that’s left now is for the public to take notice before we can really get the prices to be unreasonable for these wines.