Tag Archives: carmenère

Casas Patronales Carmenere Reserva 2012

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A food friendly Carmenere from a winery in the Maule Valley that consistently crafts tasty, value priced wines.

Winery: Casa Patronales was founded in 1990 by three friends who wanted to produce high quality grapes with an emphasis on the distinctive terrior of the Maule Valley. They planted their first vineyards in their family’s lands, and in 2003 began exporting their wines internationally. The vineyards are located in the Maule Valley, the largest wine producing area in Chile, which maintain a long and traditional history of old vine, dry-farmed vineyards.

Winemaking: Committed to every stage of the winemaking process, Casa Patronales is ardent in letting the wine express the place in which it is from, believing that wine “is a faithful reflection of its origin, its inimitable character, which comes from specific terroirs”.

Tasting Notes: Dark garnet in colour with intriguing aromas of black currant, tobacco and brown sugar. Black cherry and plum notes wrapped around an earthy core, whilst crushed black peppercorn, hints of bitter herbs, sweet cigar box spice and dried cherry comprised the lengthy finish.

100% Carmenere
Maule Valley
Chile
Produced and Bottled by Viña Casas Patronales S.A.
14% Alcohol
$8

Further Reading: Click here for an interesting read on the design of “CP” on their labels.

Viña Casa Silva Microterrior de Los Lingues Carmenère 2005

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Serene and confident with an inviting balance of lush dark fruit and smoky spices, this is an engaging glass that will keep you reaching for more.

I am a huge fan of wine clubs. Friends and family all know that for any gift-giving occasion, a wine club is the way to go for me. As much as I love picking out wines, there is something so incredibly fun about having a box filled with “surprise” wine delivered to your door. Wine clubs today offer an enormous range of variety and price, and are an excellent source for hard to find grapes and up-and-coming areas. This fantastic Carmenère arrived by way of one of the most legendary clubs, The International Wine of the Month Club. Since 1994 they have been offering family owned, estate bottled wines along with the best vintages and unique finds.

Estate: Hailing from St. Emilion, Bordeaux, Emilio Bouchon founded Viña Casa Silva in 1892. The family established themselves as pioneers at the northern edge of the Colchagua Valley in central Chile. Today the family owned company is headed by the 6th generation of winemakers, who, with their dedication to the old vineyards and preservation of the terrior, have developed into “the most award-winning Chilean winery in the 21st century” and, experts on Carmenère.

Philosophy: The family is devoted to transferring “the pride of its roots and its respect for nature and their people, to the world and its future generations” along with continuing their legacy as innovators and pioneers in the Colchagua Valley.

Winemaking: The estate is certified sustainable and has introduced a large area of vines that are additionally, farmed using organic methods. All of the processes from vineyard to winery have been officially certified as “Energy Efficient”. The Microterroir label is the result of the Silva’s family commitment to “maximum expression of quality” through the first micro-terrior study ever conducted in Chile in conjunction with Professor Yerko Moreno at the University of Talca. The project focuses on researching different aspects of terroir, including climate fluctuations, soil composition and vine characteristics, with a goal of discovering primes sites for specific grapes such as Carmenère, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Viognier The grapes were sourced from small sections of their Los Lingues Vineyard located at the foot of the Andes Mountains.

Tasting Notes: Dark garnet in colour with robust aromas of tart cherry, cigar box spice and a hint of funk. Rich black currant and blueberry flavours joined velvety tannins and an elongated finish of crushed black peppercorn, chocolate and wisps of smoky cedar.

100% Carmenère
Colchagua Valley
Chile
Produced and Bottled by Viña Casa Silva
14.5% Alcohol
$55 [Average Price]
Enjoy now

Sample submitted for review purposes.

Casas Patronales Carmenere Reserva 2011

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Casa Patronales was founded in 1990 by three friends who wanted to produce high quality grapes with an emphasis on the distinctive terrior of the Maule Valley, in 2003 they began exporting their wines internationally. The Maule Valley is the largest wine producing area in Chile, maintaining a long and traditional history of old vine, dry-farmed vineyards that produce large quantities of good value wine. Committed to every stage of the winemaking process, Casa Patronales is ardent in letting the wine express the place in which it is from, believing that wine “is a faithful reflection of its origin, its inimitable character, which comes from specific terroirs”.

Dark garnet in colour with aromas of chocolate and bell pepper. Tart red currant and cherry flavours joined earthy elements in the medium body, grippy tannins introduced tobacco, chocolate and residual cherry notes in the lingering finish. A good value, and a pleasant glass that capably pairs well with a wide variety of dishes.

100% Carmenere
Maule Valley
Chile
Produced and Bottled by Viña Casas Patronales S.A.
14% Alcohol
$8
Enjoy now

Wine Riot NYC!

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I was looking forward to attending Wine Riot NYC this past weekend, and it did not disappoint. With 300 wines set up in a trade show manner by distributor, maker or region in the massive 69th Regiment Armory, it did take a few minutes to get my bearings. Whilst I had every intention of taking a systematic approach, I of course went about in an entirely non-methodical manner, just sort of wandering about the labyrinth of tables.

Ultimately, I tasted about 50 diverse wines, ranging from some that I absolutely loved to mediocre to a couple that were, honestly, rather dreadful. Overall, it was a thoroughly fabulous adventure, and difficult for me to distill all of my notes and photos into a post rather than a small novel. Below is the condensed version of my favourite wines that I will be seeking out to enjoy from my local wine shops.

Three absolutely spectacular wines from the Languedoc, all biodynamic [and vinified with indigenous yeasts, unfiltered and unrefined] with a lovely balance of fruit, spice and earth. One always hears the term ‘Garrique’ in describing the distinctive earthy, shrub and herb flavours in wines from southern France. I thought it was rather fantastic that they had a glass jar filled with ‘Garrique’, it was such a practical way to detect and understand such a fundamental characteristic.
Mas Foulaquier L’Orphee Pic Saint-Loup 2010 $19


Well structured with blackberry blueberry, Mediterranean herbs and a compelling flinty minerality.
Chateau Maris Natural Selection Biodynamic Syrah 2009 $17
Minervois la Liviniere
Black currant, blackberry and black peppercorn notes accompanied an earthy undercurrent of roasted herbs and velvety tannins. Fantastic with all kinds of spicy dishes or sipping on its own.
85% Syrah, 15% Grenache


Domaine des Deux Anes L’Enclos Corbieres 2009 $19
If I were asked what does a Languedoc wine taste like, I would give this a pour to explain. Packed with rich velvety flavours of blackberry, black cherry, smoky herbs, black peppercorn and hints of chocolate. A fantastic expression of southern French reds.
50% Grenache Noir, 20% Carignan, 20% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah

I’m a huge fan of budge friendly Bordeaux, and the ladies at Bordeaux Wines really brought some fantastic gems for everyday enjoyment.

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Lapostolle Casa Carmenère 2010

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I picked up Lapostolle Casa Carmenère 2010 last week predominantly because I liked the fact that the label stated they were a carbon neutral vineyard, that it was a Carmenère, and that it was easy on the wallet. Lapostolle was founded in 1994 by Alexandra Marnier Lapostolle [the great granddaughter of the creator of the French liqueur Grand Mariner], and her husband Cyril de Bournet. Their winemaking philosophy is rooted in producing wines that express the superb terroirs of Chile, in addition to respecting and working in complete harmony with the environment. They are Demeter Certified Biodynamic, CarbonNeutral certified and Organic certified. Some of their methods involve composting all residual vegetation; they compost on average 700 tons of grape stems and skins each year to use as fertilizer, using only native yeasts during production, the bottles are 14% lighter and are made with up to 60% recycled material, and they promote a culture emphasizing sustainability and the environment with everyone they work and collaborate with. They have found that with these and many other sustainable practices, their farm has become self-sufficient, protecting more than 700 acres of native Chilean vegetation and wildlife within their vineyards, the “soil, plants, humans and animals interact in a closed, self-nourishing system”.

Opaque purple with red-violet highlights in colour, after aerating aromas of woodsy oak and fresh raspberry radiated from the glass. Tart cherry, juicy blackberry and raspberry flavours mingled with traces of earthy tobacco in the medium-full body. Spicy pink peppercorn gave way to toasty oak and licorice notes embraced by rich vanilla in the lengthy finish. Easy drinking with juicy fruit, cozy spices and velvety tannins, this is a fantastic glass with dinner or all on its own.

89% Carmenère, 6% Merlot, 5% Syrah
Rappel Valley
Chile
Produced & Bottled by Casa Lapostolle S.A., Santa Cruz
14.1% Alcohol
$10
Enjoy now thru 2014