Winemaker Notes
Nose: Apalta's vineyard fruit expression as its best. Plums, cherries, blackberries and blackcurrant with sweet spices coming from elegant French oak aromas. Black spices from the Carmenere gives a unique and complex addition.
Mouth: Powerful and deep structure that surprises. Soft and chewy palate that evolve towards a long and pleasant finish with a very well achieved balance.
Food pairing: Ready to drink now or cellar for several years. Decant before serving. Ideal companion for meats and elaborate dishes.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Cuvée Alexandre is one of Chile’s best Merlots, and consistency is its main virtue. Every year it shows fine ripeness, weight and enough complexity to draw attention. In 2006 the wine offers graphite, spice and blackberry aromas backed by lively black currant, blackberry and bitter chocolate flavors. A yummy wine with a touch of butter and vanilla on the finish. Drink now through 2010.
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Wine Spectator
Muscular, with broad cocoa and plum sauce notes leading the way for an ample core of currant confiture and licorice. The rock-solid finish will need some cellaring to stretch out. Best from 2009 through 2011. 20,337 cases made.
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.
Tied to the history of the so-called “lost grape of Bordeaux,” Carmenѐre, the story of Chilean Merlot is a fascinating one. For decades in Chile the former was actually thought to be Merlot, so the two were typically planted together and harvested at the same time. Since Merlot is an early-ripening variety and Carmenѐre much later-ripening, the resulting wines often tasted unripe and vegetal. Not until 1994 was Chilean Carmenѐre identified correctly. As awareness grew, growers and winemakers began handling both grapes more optimally, leading to significant improvement in the wines.
Today Merlot ranks as the third most planted variety in Chile, behind Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc. It is mostly found in the following valley DO’s, from north to south: Maipo, Cachapoal, Colchagua, Curicó and Maule. It can appear both in blends or on its own. Either way, Chilean Merlot tends to show characteristic aromas and flavors of ripe plums, dark berries and herbs, often accented by oak, with a mouthfeel that is round and full.