- Apellation:
- Colchagua Valley
- Vineyard:
- Caliterra Vineyard Estate Grown
- Composition:
- 87% Cabernet Sauvignon
- 7% Shiraz
- 6%Malbec
- Alcohol:
- 13.5% by volume
- Final pH:
- 3.62
- Total Acidity:
- 5.15 g/l (tartaric acid)
- Residual Sugar:
- 3.3 g/l
Winemaker Comment
Our 2009 Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon presents a very deep and lively color. The nose is open and abundant in aromas that recall fresh fruits such as berries, plums, and cherries that intermingle with masculine aromas of tobacco and roasted coffee, making this a very complex and pleasing wine. The palate shows tremendous structure through elegant tannins and a broad range of flavors that deliver a pleasingly long finish.
Vintage Notes
We in Colchagua, and in fact most of Chile, experienced exceptional warm, sunny, and rain-free weather throughout the entire season, including harvest. April was particularly sunny with high temperatures. Cabernet Sauvignon likes sun, but not extremes, so despite our greatest efforts in the vineyard, some grapes suffered the effects of excess sun and presented varying degrees of dehydration and reduced pigmentation, which made it necessary to employ a stricter selection process in the vineyard and cellar than in other years. Polygonal Work in the vineyard was crucial throughout the season and consisted of making a rational separation by heterogeneity within the different plots to reflect the variances generated by the diversity present in the soils. We use the latest technology and multispectral images to determine the state of maturity on a plant by plant basis and then harvest uniform sectors of fruit that are taken to the cellar and begin their own route to the bottle rather than being mixed into a mass of grapes of varying degrees of ripeness. This requires a very close degree of separation of sub-lots, such as occurs naturally the variations of the soil beneath the plants.
Fermentation and Aging
Fermentation took place in stainless steel tanks at temperatures that initially varied between 28º and 30ºC (82º- 86ºF) and later dropped to 26ºC (79ºF) to prevent over-extraction of the skins. Both natural and selected yeasts were used to increase the complexity of the blend. 50% of the new wine was aged in oak barrels for 9-12 months, depending on the development of the individual lots, and malolactic fermentation occurred during this time.
