Gato Negro is Chile’s finest selling wine. Worldwide, it is a top wine marketing leader in more than fifteen countries. It has been known to over-deliver on its price point, even with a struggling economy. This has been the case for decades. Today, the Gato Negro brand sells over four million cases in seventy countries, contributing to the wine industry on five continents.
If you were to think about those numbers, approximately two Gato Negro bottles of wine are uncorked every two seconds. Or at any given time, hundreds of bottles are being shared all over the planet.
So it’s no wonder that it’s one of my favorites. Gato Negro is owned by Viña San Pedro. Their first branded wine was created in the 60’s. This was at a time where bottled wine was quickly gaining popularity and massive amounts were being consumed by a growing middle-class. During this time, wineries had begun to market and bottle their wines that appealed to these consumers. Gato Negro was originally simply ‘negro’, they started to include white wines to their selection many years later.
Today, Gato Negro comes in many different varietals. This is a brand with a label recognized as sophisticated. This is a brand of wine to share with family and friends—“no occasion required”, their website states.
My favorite is their original Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a classic red wine, interspersed with hints of violet. I can recall sipping this many times last summer. One night in particular, I remember sipping this while stargazing. There was a new moon so we could even see faint traces of the Milky Way galaxy even though we were just outside the city limits. I spent this night with a special someone; a summertime fling. Right after we had uncorked our bottle of Gato Negro Cabernet Sauvignon, we sat down on a park bench, looked up and saw a shooting star flit across the dark night sky.
Upon first sip, you’ll notice many fresh fruit tastes and aromas. The two that stood out for me the most are black berries as well as black currant. This Cabernet Sauvignon contains 13% alcohol and is a very fresh, open wine. It is easily palatable, because of a fruity taste and texture. The tannins are light on the tongue and it goes down very smoothly.
According to the website, the harvest for this wine occurs in the San Pedro vineyards at the Central valley, at the end of March.