Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/39104
VARietALS Flare with Carmenère F rom the moment that Carmenère resur- faced there in 1984, Chile’s identity as a wine-producing region became forever linked to this variety. Through careful site selection and modern wine-growing tech- niques—namely, the shift from pergola to VSP trellising—Chile’s mono-varietal Carmenères have gained equal footing in terms of quality with the region’s dominant Bordeaux varieties. At just under 10,000 hectares, Carmenère repre- sents about seven percent of vineyard plantings, with Cabernet and Merlot accounting for more than 60 percent, and it is grown throughout the Valle Central. Similar in many ways to Cabernet Franc in expression, Carmenère holds its own allure with the ability to express terroir and for its generous yet approachable tannins. This snapshot of current releases shows just how much attention is being devoted to the variety by Chilean producers both large and small. Apaltagua 2010 ($11) Apalta Valley on granitic and colluvial soils and Curicó Valley. Fresh green herbs, coffee and tobacco aromas, quite concentrated mid palate with bright, dark fruit and medium length. GLOBAL VINEYARD IMPORTERS Casablanca Reserva 2008 ($15) Maipo Valley on porous clay soils. Meaty, peppery aromas, leaner red and black fruit with bright, taught tannins and tobacco on a concentrated mid-palate. CAROLINA WINE BRANDS Casa Lapostolle Cuvée Alexandre 2010 ($25) Colchagua Valley from sandy clay soils in Apalta. Ripe black fruit and green spice, bittersweet chocolate medium-weight, tangy tannins with spicy finish. MOËT HENNESSEY USA Concha y Toro Marqués de Casa Concho 2010 ($20) Cachapoal Valley on alluvial clay loam soils. Complex spice aromas with lush, toasty blue fruit concentrated on the mid-palate and generous, ripe tannins and a juicy finish. BANFI VINTNERS Casa Silva Reserve 2009 ($28) Colchagua Valley on clay over granite sites. Meaty, green 2 / the tasting panel / august 201 1 WINEMAKERS IN chiLe HAVE MASTERED THIS bORDEAUX VARIETy by Deborah Parker wong peppercorn aromas, spicy, savory red fruit with medium weight, bright tannins and clean finish. VIN DIVINO Koyle 2009 ($17) Colchagua Valley on deep alluvial soils. Peppery, black fruit aromas with a hint of boldo (a eucalyptus-like native plant) and flavors; deeply-extracted and pretty with soft structure. QUINTESSENTIAL WINES Maquis 2009 ($20) Colchagua Valley on clay and alluvial soils. Dark fruit and bittersweet chocolate aromas; bright and focused with silky tannins and notes of exotic brown spice and tobacco leaf. GLOBAL VINEYARD IMPORTERS Miguel Torres Los Mulas 2008 ($13) Valle Central. Spicy aromas reminiscent of the Northern Rhône with leaner, complex red fruit and generous length. DREYFUS, ASHBY & CO. Montes Purple Angel 2008 ($75) Marchigue and Apalta Valleys. Deeply colored, blue and black fruit aromas, rich mid-palate with integrated leather, cedar and vanilla notes and plenty of length. 8% Petit Verdot. TGIC IMPORTS San Pedro 1865 2009 ($19) Maule Valley from rocky, clay-loam sites. Spicy green olive aromas with bright, juicy black fruit, complex notes of tobacco, green olive, vanilla mid-palate with graphite minerality on the finish. SHAW-ROSS INTERNATIONAL IMPORTERS Santa Rita Reserva 2009 ($13) Marchigue region of Colchagua Valley on clay loam soils. Opaque black core, bright, lean black raspberry and mulberry fruit mid-palate with brown spice and graphite notes on the finish. PALM BAY IMPORTS Veramonte 2010 ($20) Casablanca Valley on sandy, red clay soils. Dried thyme, floral and vanilla aromas, juicy black fruit mid palate with grippy tannins and graphite on the finish. HUNEEUS VINTNERS