Winemaker Notes
Pairs well with red meats such as roasted lamb and braised short ribs, or complements mushrooms or a cheese plate.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The old-vine character comes through clearly here, with bark and mushroom undertones to the blackberries and blueberries. Oyster shells with seaweed attached. It’s medium-bodied with chewy tannins that are medium-grained and tell the story of these old vines, most of which were planted in 1907. Give this four or five years to come around. Better after 2028, but it’s joyful to taste its potential and history.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 La Parcelle 8 represents the third release of this single-parcel bottling, originating from vines planted in 1907. It is entirely unique within the Lapostolle portfolio, offering a timeless, classic Cabernet Sauvignon bouquet featuring dusty red fruits, eucalyptus, graphite and a refined touch of high-quality oak. The palate is ripe and svelte while still remaining lifted and energetic, concluding with a long, layered and pleasantly drying finish. Due to its classic profile and well-integrated oak characteristics, this wine stands out among the Lapostolle and Clos Apalta portfolios.
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Wine Spectator
Elegant and fresh in feel, this medium-bodied red delivers layers of heliotrope, olive and herb details. Blackberry and plum flavors swell with intensity, adding subtle cedar, graphite and cassis notes. The spice-filled finish offers refined tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now through 2036. 800 cases made, 500 cases imported.
Lapostolle was founded in 1994 by Alexandra Marnier Lapostolle and her husband Cyril de Bournet upon their discovery of a unique clos in the Apalta Valley sheltering 100-year-old pre-phylloxera vines. They quickly realized its potential for producing world-class wines and embarked on their family’s next chapter in the New World. Alexandra brought generations of French winemaking tradition and expertise to the rugged landscape of the Colchagua Valley.
Today, Charles de Bournet, the seventh generation, leads the winery in its newest chapter of innovation, punctuated by the official recognition of the Apalta DO in 2018. Together with Andrea León, Technical Director & Winemaker, Lapostolle continue to craft wines that honor the winery’s credo: French in essence, Chilean by birth.
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.
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.