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Tag Archives: Carmenere

Wine Review: William Fèvre La Mision Carmenere Gran Reserva Maipó Valley, Chile 2015

19 Tuesday Nov 2019

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Wine Reviews

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Carmenere, Chilean Wine

william fevre carmenereInky and deeply concentrated, Carmenere originated in France, a cross between Cabernet Franc and Gros Cabernet. It has largely disappeared from their preferring the warmer, drier climate of Chile where they are committed to this grape.

This wine is caught bobbing between soft and smooth and sharp and unruly. But it all comes together nicely. A highly recommended study in contrasts. Red raspberry and blackberry aromas are animated by a strong dose of jalapeno wrapped in chocolate—a simple but bold nose. That green pepper or wild herbal note is what makes this grape distinctive.

Carmenere is not noted for its acidity. But this wine vibrates with a peppery tang, and a hi-toned mineral seam that draws a contrast with the concentrated, persistent fruit power, rich chocolate and tobacco notes. The initial impression of richness is supplemented by a pointed angularity as the finish unfolds with some bitterness that gives the wine a pleasant but bracing, rustic edge. A dark, burnt wood quality lurks in the background.

Tender and rowdy like Bonnie Raitt Love Sneakin’ up on You.

Technical Notes: 93% Carmenere with a dash of Cabernet France and Cabernet Sauvignon. 13 months in oak. William Fèvre is best known for their Grand Crus vineyards in Chablis but they bought several vineyards in Chile in the early 1990’s.

Score: 90

Price: $22

Alc: 13.9%

Budget Wine Review: Root: 1 Carménère Colchagua Valley Chile 2016

23 Friday Nov 2018

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Budget Wines, Wine Reviews

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Carmenere, Chilean Wine

root 1Root 1 is an brand owned by Viña Ventisquero, a large Chilean producer with an agro-business history.

This entry level offering is a bit too slutty. Lurid flavors pop from the glass—gobs of ripe, dark berries hide behind red bell pepper, a wild herbal scent, vanilla, and charred wood. Carménère character on steroids.

The palate is rich and full bodied up front. But the soft midpalate is marred by excessive wood notes and the finish is beyond weird. Disjointed, sour acidity fights with the fruit, and the tannins are too soft to matter much. The first sip seems sensuous and promisingly powerful but the more you drink the more it tastes lewd and dissolute, its flavors pumped up and garbled.

Flamboyant and tawdry like a bogus glam rock band from the 70’s,

Score: 82

Price: $10

Alc: 13%

Budget Wine: Chilensis Reserva Carmenere Valle Del Maule Chile 2012

13 Friday May 2016

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Budget Wines, Wine Reviews

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Carmenere, Chilean Wine

chilensisAn intense nose with that characteristic wild herb aroma note shares the stage with smoke and dusty earth surrounding blackberry fruit. A classic Carmenere.

More black fruit and savory herbs on the medium-to-full bodied palate.  A wine with some intensity and complexity it is quite juicy up front and but shows a rustic aspect developing an astringent finish with sandy tannins and some wood notes.

I wouldn’t recommend it for the smooth and sweet crowd but if you like personality and some toughness in your wine this will satisfy.

Score: 87

Price: $10

Alc: 13.5%

An Iggy Pop wine to be sure:

Budget Wine: Explorador Carmenere Central Valley Chile 2011

15 Tuesday Sep 2015

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Budget Wines

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Carmenere, Chilean Wines

explorador carmenereJust  a really fun wine from Concha Y Toro, the very  large South American producer that makes everything from bottom shelf sippers to the age-worthy Don Melchor Cab.

Some funky earth and characteristic, Carmenere wild herbs compliment the dark berries on the nose, which also shows vanilla from prominent oak. There is obvious wood on the medium-bodied palate as well with firm, grippy tannins, finishing with a compelling mineral seam. The hint of sweetness up front doesn’t detract from the structure and the inherent rustic overtones of Carmenere which set this apart from other supermarket wines.

An interesting wine for the price.

Tamed but with an irrepressible wild streak, like Pink “Raise Your Glass”

Score: 87

Price: $8

Alc 13.5%

Budget Wine: Vinedos Marchigue Panul Carménère Colchagua Valley 2013

13 Friday Mar 2015

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Budget Wines, Wine Reviews

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Carmenere, Chilean Wine

panul carmenereAs is typical with Carménère, the nose is peculiar but interesting—reticent red berry, subdued by minty, herbal notes and a bit of coffee in the background. A soft, simple, medium-body palate with a glycerin-like texture doesn’t offend but it gives way to harsh bitter herbs on the finish with strong apparent alcohol. Tannins are subdued but the finish is nevertheless too grim. Were it  not for the finish this would be a pleasant wine. If you are the kind of drinker who pays no attention after the beverage goes down the hatch, this wine’s for you. But for $5, what do you expect?

Placebo’s “The Bitter End” will put you in the mood for appreciating this wine:

Score: 81

Price: $5

Alc: 13%

Budget Wine: Marchigue Carmenere Reserva Colchagua Valley 2012

29 Friday Aug 2014

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Budget Wines, Uncategorized, Wine Reviews

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Carmenere, Chilean Wine

marchigueI am a fan of unusual wines, especially when they are inexpensive. With the hundreds if not thousands of wines available on any city block, 1/2 of them tasting so much alike, it is cause for celebration when you find something strikingly different.

On that score Carmenere almost always delivers. Although originally a Bordeaux varietal, it is now seldom grown in France due to its susceptibility to disease. But it has found a home in the drier, geographically protected, valleys of Chile. And it usually produces a wild and unpredictable tasting experience, sort of like meeting Charlie Sheen for dinner.

This Carmenere plays to type. The fruit is almost prune-like, very ripe and dark for Carmenere but wild herbal notes, marjoram and mint, bushwack the senses, with coffee and fresh earth playing more subdued background music. The palate has an oily texture with some viscosity, very full body for Carmenere, with some sugar apparent. But the ample acidity and bitter herbal flavors on the finish balance that richness and give it hints of rusticity. Tannins are soft and the finish relatively short.

Easy drinking but interesting, it seems a bit manufactured on the palate perhaps with added sugar to boost viscosity but the wild and wonderful flavors make this a real treat at this price. The hint of sweetness will make this a good barbecue wine or serve it with meat sauces that have a bit of sweetness to them like a mole.

Score: 89

Alc: 13.5

Price: $8 at Trader Joe’s

Montes Carmenere Limited Selection 2010

04 Monday Mar 2013

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Wine Reviews

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Carmenere, Chilean Wine

montes carmenerr I’m on a Carmenere binge. There are worse fetishes aren’t there?

Last week I noted the Apaltagua Carmenere had its characteristic wild herbal notes tamed until the bitter finish reminded me of what I was drinking. This week’s Carmenere, also from Colchagua, is even more thoroughly house-trained. The Chileans really are trying to make this grape presentable.

No feral vegetables and only muted bitter notes on the finish. No wonder for many years the Chileans thought Carmenere was Merlot. This new breed of Carmenere is bringing out the Merlot-like character of the grape.

Black cherry, smoke, and black pepper are prominent aromas on the nose; chocolate completes the flavor profile on the round, shapely, medium body palate. The finish is peppery and longer than is characteristic of Carmenere due to more substantial tannins than is typical.

Montes makes the iconic Purple Angel, a high end ($60) Carmenere that takes the comparison with new world Merlot even further, with a big body and ample cigar box fumes due to the 18 months in new French oak. The Limited Selection, with only 70% of the juice 6 months in French Oak, lacks the depth and dimension of the Purple Angel but at $16 still has a touch of elegance and nuance. A good bargain.

But I am missing that never-know-what-you-will-get quality of traditional Carmenere.

Score: 88

Price: $16

Apaltagua Envero Gran Reserva Carmenere 2010

25 Monday Feb 2013

Posted by Dwight Furrow in Wine Reviews

≈ 1 Comment

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Carmenere, Chilean Wine

apaltagua The great 19h Century agnostic Robert Green Ingersoll said “courage without conscience is a wild beast.”

This wine appears to be acquiring a conscience because the wildness has been tamed and what is left is almost respectable–a wine with aspirations.

Carmenere is an odd grape. A former Bordeaux varietal although today seldom grown in France, it has found a home in Chile where the warm, dry growing season helps the vines to consistently flower and therefore produce reliable yields. Although Chile produces more Cabernet than Carmenere the latter has become a kind of signature grape for them.

When the grapes are harvested too early, Carmenere has an unpleasant green pepper flavor. When harvested on time the wine still exhibits a wild herbaceous note that has you thinking of David Lynch films or Keith Moon in his prime. But this Envero from old vines grown in Apalta is smooth and sophisticated (at least as sophisticated as this grape gets.)

On the nose, red fruits settle nicely into a vanilla bath. Well-tamed green olive notes round out the intriguing nose. On the medium body palate, the fruit becomes dark and foreboding while still wrapped in vanilla. As you savor the mid-palate, the herbaceous quality becomes quite pronounced and then the bitterness hits and your remember this is Carmenere—it was going to take you on a wild ride at some point. If you like the way a mouthful of Kale finishes, this is your wine. Actually, I’m exaggerating a bit. The wine is overall a pleasant experience. Good acidity and the characteristic soft tannins keep this wine in balance. The flavors are deep and mouth-filling, and with a nice, fatty burger to absorb some of the bitterness on the finish this will satisfy.

You owe it to yourself to take a walk on the wild side and this is one of the better Carmeneres available. A good bargain. 14% Alc.

Score: 87

Price: $15

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