A Chilean wine that should have stayed home- Panilonco 2005 Merlot/Malbec

The more I drink South American wines, the more I think they’re hit or miss. Some are just awesome. Some are just terrible. There’s not much in between. Last week, as I was doing my weekly shopping trip at Trader Joe’s, I spotted a Chilean wine called Panilonco. The blend of Merlot and Malbec was interesting. Excited by the combination, I bought a bottle and headed home.

Big mistake. This wine was terrible. If you regularly read this blog, you know that terrible is not a word that I use lightly. I reserve it for the worst of the worst. This was one of them. In fact, it was one of the select few wines I have dumped down the kitchen drain. I couldn’t drink it. I couldn’t even power through the half glass I poured myself. It was that bad. I wouldn’t even know where to start to explain why I hated it so much. Just take my word for it. Avoid this import. You’ll thank me for this advice. I promise.

Recommendation: Don’t buy it

Comments

[Jack Lindberg]

Have you tried the Panilonco carmenere ?
Thanks...Jack

[Tekiewolf]

I enjoy a bottle of wine now and then with friends and family. I was at a friends house and my friends mother brought out this wine, though it was a 2002 bottle and not 2005.

The 2002 bottle was sweet and very balanced. Everyone really liked it, we enjoyed two bottles of the 2002 reserve.

Then a few months later I went to Trader Joes and bought another bottle, 2006 reserve. It was more bitter and not as pleasing.

[Diane]

Really? I've bought this a couple of times. I found it to be full-bodied, dry, very smooth, yet fruity. I loved it! I suspect it's more of a preference of taste and ones buds!

[Mike]

I also suspect it has to do with shipping. So many "bad" bottles are really just victims of poor shipping, especially the ones from S.A. and Australia. Often they sit in hot warehouses waiting to be shipped, are put in hot cargo holds on the ships, sit in the sun after they are unloaded and finally sit in warehouses like Trader Joe's and Costco's before they finally make it to the shelf. The handlers bake way too many wines by mishandling. I've had the Panilonco camenere and the chard/viognier and found them both pleasant and well worth the $5 I paid.

[Evey]

I really like the Panilonco Carmenere. Well worth the $5 or so from trader joe's. better than many 15-20 buck wines.

[Keri]

the panilonco 2007 reserve is excellent! tried it over the weekend and it was verrry smooth! paid 3.99---and well worth more than that!!!

[wayne ferrell]

I tried a bottle of the 2007 vintage of this stuff today and found it to be quite palatable. Maybe a bit weak on the nose but what can you expect from such an inexpensive wine? It's a perfect choice for that second or third bottle when your guests' taste buds have been numbed by alcohol and plying them with additional fine vintages is, ...well, wasteful.

[Nila]

I liked it, the TJ wine guy referred me to it for my purpose, awesome for the daily 5 oz with 1 piece of dark chocolate.

[Blair Davis]

I have to weigh in on this one: Panilonco Carmenere 2008 is such an incredible value that I regret not buying a case of it when I had the chance. Clearly, I'm not going to drive 725 miles to the nearest TJ to buy more, but I'll confess to having considered it. It's a wonderfully robust and well-balanced (if somewhat sweet) red that would be perfect for a party.

[Jasper]

I am just now sampling this wine, which is why I looked up this blog. I was shocked by the bitterness. It seems like someone took a very nice, full-bodied wine with flavors of dark fruit, and POURED GROUND ASPIRIN INTO IT. There are lovely flavors lurking behind this bizarre bitter streak, and I wish that I could isolate them.

Perhaps the bitterness is a result of some sort of storage problem, but I doubt I'll be taking the risk of purchasing it again, especially with so many other wines to explore.

Happily, from the responses here, I've learned that the Panilonco Carmenere may be well worth a try. Thanks for the advice, folks!

[Steve Struck]

I think you got a bad bottle. I never had the 2005, but have been drinking later vintages for a year off and on. Just finished a 2008 tonight and it's just fine. A $5 wine that tastes like $8 or $10.

[dnrpdx]

FYI for the Carmenere it should be opened the day before.

[Reg Oignon]

Drinking the 2009 Panilonco Carmenere Reserve as we speak. Fine plonk for $4 - doesn't taste nearly as young as the label suggests.

[di]

I have just finished a bottle of Panilonco wine 2009- Reserve
a Merlot/Malabec blend.
quite good!!
from Chile. I highly recommend it. It tasted as good as bottles of wine that were in the hundreds of dollar mark!

[meddle]

I agree with you - don't buy that wine ;-)

More for me!!! I love both the Malbec and Carmenere. I was searching google to learn more about about it. It's been my favorite since I got it at TJ's.

Just so you know I rarely purchase wine that's above $10 a bottle. So... what do I know.

[Sue Falls]

Panilonco Cardonnay Viognier seemed like such a good idea and I coudn't wait to open the bottle..... Until I started to pull the cork out and it crumbled. I'm pouring out my bottle of bad wine - er cider. Good thing I don't remember how much I spent on it, but I guess it wasn't much.

[Kathy]

I absolutely love the Panilonco combination of Chardonnay and Vignier. If you haven't tried it, you really should. Packs a punch too! ; )

[cvengr]

We're on about our 20th case of the Carmenere from Panilonco. Bought it just after the Earthquakes in Chile in 3-4 different buys.

Generally, one out of every 4-8 cases might not taste as good. Runs not as good, more tangy than smooth, and maybe 4 bottles out of 10 cases showed signs of leakage.

Tried both the 2008 and 2009. 2008 was still a little better, but neither dry. Mid 80s in pt ratings value. Generally tastes better than many $20 wines.

If you want a $20 Malbec blend that tastes like a $100 bottle try a Argentinian Tikal Patriota, if you can still find it.

[sfmickmaster]

I picked up the 2009 Carmenere from TJs. After tasting on the first day I really didn't enjoy it. But, as dnrpdx's comment above states, after re-corking it tastes better after a day or several days.

[gilbert grape]

i noticed the same thing. this wine is horrible if you don't let it rest. decanted, it's a completely different product. just came back from tj with 5 more bottles.

[Don]

I love this wine. It is probably my favorite sub 5 buck red wine. I have never even bothered to see what other people thought of a budget wine but this 2010 Panilonco tasted as good or better than some of my $10-15 favorites and I had to see what others were saying about it. It seems as though I'm in the majority here...this Panilonco is really good.

[vicky]

Love the Panilonco Carmenere. Have bought several cases over the past couple of years. Friends like it also. Would definitely recommend it.