British wine expert Steven Spurrier joined with Eduardo Chadwick in New York City on May 10 to reenact the now-famous Viña Errázuriz 2004 “Berlin Tasting,” which placed the company’s own wines in a blind tasting against some of the wine world’s most prestigious producers and invited top experts to judge for themselves. The results in Berlin were as surprising as those of Spurrier’s legendary “Paris Tasting” it was modeled after. In Berlin, the international panel of judges couldn’t believe their eyes when two Chilean wines–Viñedo Chadwick 2000 and Seña 2001 topped the list, leaving Bordeaux and Tuscan legends in their wake.

Double Good News for Chile

The exercise has since been repeated around the world and always with similar results: Chilean wines can–and do–outshine some of the great legends of the wine world. The New York version was no exception, and this time, not only did a Chilean wine come out on top over such greats as California’s Opus One, France’s Chateau Haut-Brion & Chateau Lafite Rothschild, and Italy’s Sassicaia, for the first time, the winning wine was the Errázuriz icon Carmenere Kai.

See an interview with Steven Spurrier and Eduardo Chadwick on the Berlin Tasting Concept:

Watch a pdf slide show of the event here: Berlin Tasting in New York, May 10, 2010

Top 10 for the  “Berlin Tasting” in New York

1. Errázuriz KAI 2006* (US$80)
2. Opus One 2006 (US$160)
3. Chateau Haut-Brion 2006 (US$500)
4. Errázuriz Don Maximiano 2006* (US$90)
5. Chateau Lafite Rothschild 2006 (US$1000)
6. Errázuriz Syrah La Cumbre 2006* (US$80)
7. Seña 2006* (US$100)
8. Stag’s Leap SLV 2006 (US$70)
9. Vinedo Chadwick  2006 (US$180)   (tie)*
9. Sassicaia 2006 (US$160)  (tie)

* From the Errázuriz family of wines

The US-based National Public Radio news program All Things Considered dedicated a 4-minutes segment to the recent event. Read about it and listen to the report here: Chilean Wine wins Blind Taste Test