Winemaker Notes
Blend: 86.5% Carmenere, 8% Malbec, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2.5% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Fresh red fruits, berries, dried chalk and meat. Well-balanced with gentle tannins and elegant complexity. Drink or hold.
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Wine Enthusiast
Earthy berry aromas are typical of good Carmenère, meaning they are lightly herbal, spicy and a touch savory. This is a ripe specimen from a hot year, so it's plump and creamy in weight. Flavors of blackberry, fig and chocolate are lightly herbal, while the finish is smooth and generous.
Dark, full-bodied and herbaceous with a spicy kick, Carménère found great success with its move to Chile in the mid-19th century. However, the variety went a bit undercover until 1994 when many plantings previously thought to be Merlot, were profiled as Carménère. Somm Secret— Carménère is both a progeny and a great-grandchild of the similarly flavored Cabernet Franc.
Well-regarded for intense and exceptionally high quality red wines, the Colchagua Valley is situated in the southern part of Chile’s Rapel Valley, with many of the best vineyards lying in the foothills of the Coastal Range.
Heavy French investment and cutting-edge technology in both the vineyard and the winery has been a boon to the local viticultural industry, which already laid claim to ancient vines and a textbook Mediterranean climate.
The warm, dry growing season in the Colchagua Valley favors robust reds made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Malbec and Syrah—in fact, some of Chile’s very best are made here. A small amount of good white wine is produced from Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.