Winemaker Notes
Brilliant ruby red color. The nose is ample, complex and full of fruit. Aromas of cassis and red berries predominate first, to give place after agitation to elegant and subtle notes of vanilla, earth and fine herbs. In mouth, the harmonious blend displays a juicy attack, a luscious texture and a remarkable smoothness of tannins. The evolution leaves an impression of balance, roundness and voluptuous final. A pleasant, attractive and approachable wine, with persistent notes of licorice and ripe strawberries throughout the long savory finish. EPU is the perfect introduction to the exclusive and harmonious world of Almaviva.
Blend: 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Carménère, 3% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This is a little fruitier and more vibrant than previous vintages, with sweet berries, cassis, fine herbs and roasted white sesame seeds on the nose. Fine tannins with sweet berries and a very smooth, refined finish. A medium-bodied, approachable, balanced Epu from a hot vintage. 10% new barrels. Already very approachable, but will age nicely in the next few years. Drink or hold.
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Vinous
The 2023 Blend EPU comes from Maipo. Deep garnet in hue, it delivers ripe fruit aromas of blackberry, dried plum, a touch of cassis and violet. Rich and voluminous, with plush tannins and a hint of talc, the palate is juicy and enveloping. Its freshness balances the mature profile. 14.5% alcohol.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Composed of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Carménère and 3% each Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the 2023 Epu derives from younger vines and deeper soils at the Almaviva estate and matured for 12 months in 10% new French oak. It opens with a classic bouquet of cigar wrapper, anise and spice notes set against a core of black and blue fruits. The palate is rich and seductive, concluding with a luscious, fruit-driven finish enhanced by herbal nuances that linger.
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Decanter
Red bell peppers on the nose - so clear - really unmistakeable and so pronounced. Shiny and glossy, still more pepper flavours on the palate with bright red cherries and some creamy milk chocolate too. Relatively compact still, but there’s finesse and lovely cooling freshness all the way through with a mint, aniseed finish. I don't get the alcohol here. Well balanced and presented. 3% Cabernet Franc completes the blend. Director Manuel Louzada, winemaker Michel Friou.
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Wine Spectator
Engaging for its petrichor, herb and graphite aromas, which meld into a generous, rich and smooth core of blackberry and black plum. A measure of acidity draws out the finish around structured yet yielding tannins, with hints of cocoa powder. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.
Almaviva is the name of both winery and wine born of the joint venture between Baron Philippe de Rothschild and Viña Concha y Toro. It is also that of Pierre de Beaumarchais' character, the "Count of Almaviva" in his Marriage of Figaro, a work Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart later turned into one of the most popular operas ever. The classical epithet, laid out in Pierre de Beaumarchais' fair hand, shares the label with insignia of pre-hispanic roots symbolizing a union of European and American cultures that at every level has created successive bonds over centuries that have evolved a unique identity. The recent synthesis of French tradition and American soil has delivered an exceptional wine embodying the best of both worlds, a Primer Orden that really shines.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
The Maipo Valley is Chile’s most famous wine region. Set in the country’s Central Valley, it is warm and quite dry, often necessitating the use of irrigation. Alluvial soils predominate but are supplemented with loam and clay.
The climate in Maipo is best-suited for ripe, full-bodied reds like Cabernet Sauvignon (the region’s most widely planted grape), Merlot, Syrah and Carmenère, a Bordeaux variety that has found a successful home in Chile.
White wines are also produced with great prosperity, especially near the cooler coast, include Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.