Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
A traditional Alto Maipo cabernet, this grows in the hills of Macul, where it takes on the Andean scents of spice, cherries, menthol and herbs. In a warmer year like 2009, the Andean cool is complemented by ripe aromas and sweet, liqueur-like scents. Pour it with lamb.
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Wine Enthusiast
Even if this Cab shows eucalyptus on the nose along with asphalt and olive aromas, the bouquet is complex and true as far as high-end Chilean Cabs go. A saturated, syrupy body reflects a hot vintage, while baked flavors of earthy fruits, beef soup and chocolate qualify as stewy but tasty.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
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.