Laberinto Vineyards
The Laberinto estate was created by passionate Chilean winemaker Rafael Tirado in 1993 and is nestled In the cool shadow of the foothills of the Andes Mountains in the easternmost part of Chile’s Maule Valley wine region. This area is considered one of Chile’s finest wine-producing areas and is 250 kilometers south of the capital city of Santiago.
Over the years, the estate has become synonymous with high-quality terroir-driven wines that reflect the high-altitude volcanic landscape of the Maule Valley. He is considered one of the influential figures in South American winemaking, a pioneering winemaker. Despite the recognition and respect of his winemaking colleagues, even after nearly thirty vintages, he remains a very humble individual who strives to make the next vintage even better.
The estate produces three different wine labels from organically grown grapes that come only from the grapes in Laberinto’s vineyards. The three ranges are Cenizas, Arcillas, and Trumao. In this cool climate, the wines burst with bright acidity and minerality that has catapulted Rafael and his wines into winemaking superstardom.
The Origins of Laberinto
Rafael Tirado comes from one of Chile’s most respected winemaking families. His twin brother, Enrique Tirado, became the head winemaker for Concha y Toro’s award-winning Don Melchor label.
He has worked with several of Chile’s largest most influential wineries in the Maipo Valley, including Terranoble and Veramonte. He gained valuable experience in France between 1995 and 1997 when he spent time assisting several harvests in Sancerre and Bandol. He then moved on and spent time in Quintessa, Estancia, and Simi in California.
Rafael took a different route from his twin brother who decided to pursue his winemaking in the warm and productive grape-growing heartland of Chile’s Maipo and Casablanca Valleys. Rafael however followed a different path, he wanted to try making wines that would best express the randomness and complexity typical of nature.
The search for this winemaking utopia inspired him to return to his family’s land in the familiar foothills of Colbún in Chile. The land had once been the summer property for the family. In 1993, he followed his winemaking vision by planting half an hectare of Cabernet Sauvignon there.
He soon realized that he wanted something unique that captured the random non-linear behavior of Mother Nature. Instead of planting rows of vines, he crafted labyrinths. The odd and uneven access to water, wind direction, and sun exposure would make complex and unruly vines that would best represent the challenging terroir in the area. Thus came about the name of his winery Laberinto, Spanish for labyrinth which represents the formation that his 23 hectares of vineyards are planted in.
The Wild Terroir of the Maule Valley
The Maule Valley has a Mediterranean climate with hot summers and cool winters. Rainstorms soak the region from May to September, during the summer, intense dry heat fills the valley. The towering Andes mountains bring cool breezes into the valley at night. Laberinto is one of the valley’s highest vineyard sites. Next to Lake Colbún, the soils are composed of various combinations of porous volcanic ash and granite.
The vineyards are grown in four sectors, each with a distinct micro-climate. Sector Maitén and Sector Puemo sit at the highest elevations, between 550 and 600 meters. Sector Quillay sits below them and further down the hill to the west are Sector Boldo and the Bodega, the winery’s main building.
Like other wineries in this part of Chile, there are several challenges when growing grapes. Sitting on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’ means earthquakes are a constant concern, especially for the barrels. In addition to earthquakes, grape pathogens, and animals, there is the risk of unpredictable forest fires. Climate change has made the Maule Valley one of the most fire-prone regions in Chile.
Laberinto’s Winemaking Legacy
Rafael Tirado and his team farm their grapes organically and hope to achieve the status of a ‘zero-waste’ vineyard by 2028. To achieve this, he uses regenerative viticulture, allowing native plants to grow in his vineyards and refraining from using pesticides. Up to 75% of the property is a preserved native forest rich in conifers.
In the winter, Tirado lets cows, horses, and sheep roam throughout his vineyards. This allows more carbon to enter the topsoil and provides a natural way to compact the soil, trim weeds, and add natural fertilizers! To increase the organic carbon and nutrients in the soil even more, Tirado and his team rely on composting, which in addition to increasing the soil’s nutrient content, compost helps prevent erosion, maintains soil moisture, and may reduce root rot.
Winemaker Rafael Tirado
Laberinto’s has a total of twenty-three hectares of vineyards where Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and País grapes grow. The grapes that go into the wines for the three different wine labels are carefully selected based on their orientation in the vineyard they grow in.
For his Cenizas label, he uses grapes planted on north-facing slopes. His Arcillas label uses grapes growing on higher elevations with crushed stone soils and more exposure to the cold Andean winds. For the Trumao label, Tirado uses red grapes planted on the north-facing slopes and sauvignon blanc planted facing south.
Laberinto’s wines are aged in a large underground cellar called the Tunel. The cellar’s entrance is an unassuming wooden door that leads to a long underground chamber that stretches underneath the mountainside vineyard. Inside this unique structure are about eighty barrels or 400 liters of wine. The cellar maintains a constant temperature between 13 and 16 degrees Celsius.
The Wines of Laberinto
Cenizas Sauvignon Blanc
This Sauvignon Blanc comes from four blocks on southwest-facing slopes in the Laberinto vineyard in Colbún ( Chile). Grown in porous volcanic soils and cooled by the cold Andean Puelche winds, this Sauvignon Blanc has bracing acidity, 12.5% ABV, and beautiful aromas of tropical fruits, citrus, and minerality on the palate. The Cenizas Sauvignon Blanc is fermented in stainless steel tanks with six months of lees exposure before being bottled without filtration. It pairs beautifully with shellfish, oysters, complex salads, and white seabass ceviche.
Cenizas Chardonnay
This white wine is made from 86% Chardonnay and 14% Semillon grapes sourced from different sectors in the northwest-facing plots of the vineyards in Colbún, (Chile). Volcanic soils, intense sun, and cool winds make a wine that has a refreshing acidity. The wine is fermented in stainless steel tanks with five days of maceration on the skins. This is followed by eight months of aging in concrete tanks on lees. A beautiful yellow color with aromas of pears, apples, and bright yellow flowers mixed with dried fruits and a pinch of white pepper. This refreshing and sophisticated Chardonnay/Semillon blend pairs wonderfully with oily fish such as salmon or trout or spicy Southeast Asian soups such as Pho or Tom Yum.
Cenizas Pinot Noir
This 100% Pinot Noir comes from the southeastern part of the Laberinto vineyards in Colbún, (Chile). The cool Andean breezes and shade provide a cool terroir for the Pinot Noir grapes to develop tight acidity and soft tannins. After harvesting, the grapes are macerated on their skins for 18 days. It is then aged for twelve months in 400-liter French oak barrels.
The wine has a shimmering deep ruby color. Aromas of laurel, rose buds, and red fruits dance on the nose. A unique earthiness and hint of native hardwoods make up the palate. The wine pairs perfectly with roasted duck and vegetables or sauteed mushrooms in olive oil and garlic.
Cenizas Mezcla Tinta
The Mezcla Tinta is a Bordeaux-style blend featuring 60% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. The grapes are grown on the warmest north-facing slopes of the vineyard facing the lake in Colbún, (Chile). The wine is macerated on its skins for 22 to 24 days, giving it a deep ruby color and beautiful tannins. The wine is then aged for 14 months in 400-liter French oak barrels. The Mezcla Tinta has distinct herbal notes of rosemary and fruit aromas of blueberries and wild berries from the local forest. The wine can be paired with hard cheeses, or roasted meats such as lamb cooked over an open fire.
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