Roberto Henríquez ‘Molino del Ciego’ Blanco 2021

Location: Chile, Itata/Bío Bío

Winemaker: Roberto Henríquez

Grapes: (Skin Contact) Semillón

From us at M&L: 1 single block of vines producing around 3000kg of fruit per vintage. The wine is herbaceous with aromatic notes of apricot, Medjool date and fresh cucumber.

From the Importer T. Edward: Roberto Henríquez studied agronomy and enology at the University of Concepción. From there, he travelled and worked with winemakers in Canada, South Africa and finally in the Loire Valley with Rene Mosse. Rene had a profound effect on Roberto’s perspective on winemaking and his progression into organic and biodynamic farming.

Roberto, originally from Concepción, returned home after his time in abroad to begin making his own wine. Returning to the traditional Pipeño methods of the original winemakers of Chile felt intuitive to the winemaking style he had adopted. The rest of his story to present is pure progression to the pursuit of the most pure wines in a true Chilean context.

His vineyards were personally and carefully selected. Working with long term fermage agreements, he farms all the land himself (with the help of farming animals). To the north, in Itata, he is working with a vineyard of old vine Semillon and blends that with Corinto (aka Chasselas) and Muscat d’Alejandria producing an orange style wine. A little further south, in Bío Bío, he is farming Pais, from which he makes the Pipeño and the Santa Cruz de Coya.

He works with carbonic macerations and ages in old Rauli wood barrels. His wines are light-bodied, translucent, refined, and full of character!