Winemaker Notes
Cherry-red with violet hues. The nose is predominated by red fruit, like raspberries and cherries, and berries, such as blueberries. There are also spicy notes imparted from wine’s barrel aging, which adds complexity to this wine. Balanced, with good body and medium structure. The tannins are smooth, leading to a pleasant, elegant and prolonged finish.
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
Aromas of blackberries, dark cherries, dried herbs, cloves and olives. Some toffee, too. Medium-to full-bodied with fine, firm tannins. Ripe and balanced with a chewy, spicy finish. 100% cabernet sauvignon.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 1865 Selected Collection Old Vines hails from 70-year-old dry-farmed vines. It leads with a red-fruited, herbal, gravel-driven nose, transitioning to a palate that combines succulent lift with ripe yet focused density. The finish is round, slightly sweet and framed with pleasantly drying tannins.
-
Wine Enthusiast
Fruit forward, it shows cherry and raspberry aromas with hints of aniseed. This red delivers plenty of spices. Flavors of cumin and aniseed are followed by red berries and toasted oak. The aftertaste exhibits notes of smoke.
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.
Dramatic geographic and climatic changes from west to east make Chile an exciting frontier for wines of all styles. Chile’s entire western border is Pacific coastline, its center is composed of warm valleys and on its eastern border, are the soaring Andes Mountains.
Chile’s central valleys, sheltered by the costal ranges, and in some parts climbing the eastern slopes of the Andes, remain relatively warm and dry. The conditions are ideal for producing concentrated, full-bodied, aromatic reds rich in black and red fruits. The eponymous Aconcagua Valley—hot and dry—is home to intense red wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Merlot.
The Maipo, Rapel, Curicó and Maule Valleys specialize in Cabernet and Bordeaux Blends as well as Carmenère, Chile’s unofficial signature grape.
Chilly breezes from the Antarctic Humboldt Current allow the coastal regions of Casablanca Valley and San Antonio Valley to focus on the cool climate loving varieties, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Chile’s Coquimbo region in the far north, containing the Elqui and Limari Valleys, historically focused solely on Pisco production. But here the minimal rainfall, intense sunlight and chilly ocean breezes allow success with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The up-and-coming southern regions of Bio Bio and Itata in the south make excellent Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Spanish settlers, Juan Jufre and Diego Garcia de Cáceres, most likely brought Vitis vinifera (Europe’s wine producing vine species) to the Central Valley of Chile sometime in the 1550s. One fun fact about Chile is that its natural geographical borders have allowed it to avoid phylloxera and as a result, vines are often planted on their own rootstock rather than grafted.