Alpha "M"

Name: Montes Alpha "M"
Brand: Montes
SKU: WRW0230AH
Price: 5499 THB
Availability: InStock

฿฿฿

SKU:WRW0230AHIn stock

JS96

From our sommelier team

Alpha M is Viña Montes' Bordeaux-varietal red from the Denomination of Origin Apalta Valley, Chile, grown at the Finca de Apalta estate in the Colchagua Valley. The 2020 technical sheet gives the blend as 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot, from clones 46C, 169 and others in smaller proportions. Montes describes soils of granitic origin varying in clay content, depth and organic matter, and in the quantity of rocks and stones found in them, ranging from fluvial to glacial in origin. Vines sit on 30-degree slopes, trained to a simple double Guyot at 5,555 vines per hectare, with yields of 3.5 to 4.0 tonnes per hectare. Grapes are hand-harvested into 8kg boxes during the coolest hours, double-sorted, fermented with selected yeasts at 28 degrees C, then macerated post-fermentation for up to ten days. The wine spends 18 months in French oak: 70% in new barrels, the remaining 30% in second- and third-use barrels. It is lightly filtered before bottling. Alcohol 14.5%, pH 3.56, residual sugar 3.57 g/L.

Producer history

Viña Montes was founded in 1988, initially under the name Discover Wines, after Aurelio Montes and Douglas Murray harvested in 1987 the first crop that would become Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon. Montes had spent 16 years at Viña Undurraga and Viña San Pedro before co-founding the winery, alongside partners Alfredo Vidaurre and Pedro Grand, to produce premium wines for the export market. The estate's own timeline records a gold medal for its Sauvignon Blanc at Vinexpo in 1990 and the introduction of Syrah to Chile in 1993. The Apalta Estate was acquired in 1995, and Alpha M followed in 1996, which Montes describes as Chile's first iconic wine. Montes Folly arrived in 2000 and Purple Angel, a Carmenère, in 2003. The Apalta winery itself was inaugurated in 2004. Montes joined the B Corporation movement in 2024. Aurelio Montes Jr. now leads winemaking and received the Carmenère Winemaker of the Year award from The Drinks Business in 2025.

Signature pairings

Thai grilled beef salad (ยำเนื้อย่าง) — The charred beef and lime dressing meet the wine's cassis fruit and firm tannin well, but ask the kitchen to keep the chilli restrained. At 14.5% alcohol with 70% new oak, this wine amplifies capsaicin heat rather than absorbing it.
Roast beef fillet with red wine jus — Montes names beef fillet among its own recommended pairings. The protein and fat soften the tannin from 18 months in French oak, and the jus mirrors the wine's dark-fruit core.
Aged Manchego with quince paste — Montes suggests strong cheese for this wine. A hard aged sheep's cheese has the salt and protein to handle the tannic frame, while quince picks up the ripe red-fruit and vanilla register the producer describes.

Montes Alpha "M" is a premium Bordeaux-style red blend from Chile's Casablanca Valley, crafted from Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot. The 2020 vintage displays a full-bodied structure with high tannins and medium-high acidity, delivering dominant blackcurrant and dark plum fruit on the palate. Cedar and oak frame the primary fruit, while emerging tobacco and leather notes suggest complexity and aging potential. This wine pairs beautifully with grilled red meat, braised beef, and lamb dishes, and holds its own alongside aged hard cheeses.