Berlin 2004
Press release
The Berlin Tasting, a Milestone in the History of Chilean Wine Industry
The Chilean wine industry and Viña Errázuriz will remember the 23rd of January 2004, as the day of the ‘Berlin Tasting’. When thirty-six of Europe’s most highly regarded wine experts met in Berlin to blind taste sixteen wines – and when Viñedo Chadwick 2000 and Seña 2001 were selected first and second, respectively, in their lists of preferences. Read More >
In an historic decision, established French classics such as Château Lafite, Château Margaux, Château Latour, and Italian cult wines including Tignanello, Sassicaia, Solaia and Guado al Tasso, from the iconic 2000 –heralded as the Milenium vintage by Robert Parker– and 2001 harvest, were placed by the judges a distance behind the two Chilean wines.
Viñedo Chadwick 2000 from Viña Errázuriz’s Maipo Valley was placed first ahead of Seña 2001 (born from the partnership-wine between Viña Errázuriz and Robert Mondavi of California). In third place came Château Lafite 2000.
Participants
Hans Joachim Brogsitter, Andrew Catchpole, Carlos De Carlos, Markus Del Monego MW, Ueli Eggenberger, Richard Ehrlich, Wolfgang Fassbender, Joachim Fricke, Hans-Lorenz Fuchs, Tatiana Gagen, Stefan Gerner, Sven Göcke, Alexander Gottardi, Erich Grasdorf, Lars Bo Henriksen, Andreas Heuer Winterfeld, Dieter Huebler, Adolf Huesgen, Peter Keller, Martin Lambeck, Carlos López, Jürgen Luna, Martina Malle, Jürgen Mathäss, Roger Maurer, Christoph Meier, Dieter Mittler, Peter Moser, Lenz M. Moser, Lynn Murray, Josef Obermeier, Adolf Paschek, Peter Permann, Marcus Porzucek, Jens Priewe, Sven Schröpfer, Peter Stecher, Hendrick Thoma, Peter Winding.
Berlin
23 January 2004 Ritz-Carlton Hotel- Steven Spurrier, René Gabriel, Eduardo Chadwick
- 1- Viñedo Chadwick 2000
- 2- Seña 2001
- 3- Château Lafite-Rothschild 2000
- 4- Château Margaux 2001
- 4- Seña 2000
- 6- Viñedo Chadwick 2001
- 6- Château Margaux 2000
- 6- Château Latour 2000
- 9- Don Maximiano 2001
- 10- Château Latour 2001
- 10- Solaia 2000
Expert Opinions
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Steven Spurrier, Consultant Editor to Decanter & Chairman of Decanter World Wine Awards, United Kingdom, October 2013I don’t think he was expecting at all to do as well as he did, but I think having done it, it was an educational experience further than he had planned, because instead of just educating the 40 or 50 people in the room, he educated the entire world.
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René Gabriel, Co-Host, Swiss Wine-Expert, January 2004World Class wines, as the word suggests, can come from any part of the world. Class by itself is defined by comparing with others and originates in the capacity of a wine to compete. And a tasting like the Berlin Tasting can only be won with world class quality.
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Michael Cox, Europe Director of Wines of Chile, October 2013If the destruction of the Berlin Wall in 1989 heralded a seismic change in Germany, then the Berlin Tasting of 2004 has had a similarly profound effect on the way the wine world perceived Chile and its wines.
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Andrew Catchpole, Wine & Drinks Correspondent At The Daily Telegraph, UK “Don’t Trust The Price Tag” The Daily Telegraph, UK, April 10, 2004I have long been a fan of Chilean wines, particularly those priced between £5 and £10, but I had always thought of Seña and Viñedo Chadwick and several other expensive cult wines over-priced and over-hyped. Berlin changed my mind…The real lesson of Berlin is not to let price or labels pull the wool over your eyes. Neither is a guarantee of quality.
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Peter Keller, Wine Journalist, Neue Zürcher Am Sonntag, Diplomholder Wset, Switzerland, November 2013At the Berlin Tasting I compared the best European wines with the Chilean examples for the first time. [It was] a quite impressive event because nobody had thought that the quality of the Chilean wines had such an excellent level. After the Berlin tastings around the world the situation has changed. People are convinced that Chile has the potential to make great wines which can compete with European ones.
Opinions
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Steven Spurrier, Consultant Editor to Decanter & Chairman of Decanter World Wine Awards, United Kingdom, October 2013
I don’t think he was expecting at all to do as well as he did, but I think having done it, it was an educational experience further than he had planned, because instead of just educating the 40 or 50 people in the room, he educated the entire world.
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Jeannie Cho Lee MW, First Asian Master of Wine, Contributing Editor Decanter Asia, Co-Chair of DAWA, Author, Wine Consultant & Educator, November 2011
When Eduardo and I first discussed the concept of this blind tasting format, I told him to brace himself for disappointment, especially given the popularity of Bordeaux reds in this part of the world. I was completely wrong in my warning and I am truly surprised by the results…
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Jorge Lucki, Brazilian Wine Journalist and Columnist for Valor Econômico de Sao Paulo, October 2013
Until that point only Eduardo knew what he had in his hands. Today the whole world knows… By reaching indisputable recognition in the world wine scene, Eduardo Chadwick’s wines have clearly demonstrated Chile’s tremendous vitivinicultural potential and have helped Chilean wines earn greater space and credibility in the international market.
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Josh Raynolds, Wine Critic to Steven Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, USA, December 2013
These tastings definitely have had an impact on how many influential members of the American wine trade view Chile today. So I see them as invaluable to promoting Chile’s well- deserved image as a source for world-class wine that can sit alongside the best that the rest of the world has to offer.
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Jancis Robinson MW, “Chilean Wine Grows Up” Financial Times UK, ft Weekend Magazine, February 14, 2004
One enterprising Chilean wine producer, Eduardo Chadwick of Viña Errázuriz, has managed to organise a similar evolutionary milestone for the Chilean wine industry—or at least of his own wines… at what will doubtless come to be known in the history of Chilean wine as the “Berlin Tasting”
