- Apellation:
- Colchagua Valley
- Vineyard:
- Caliterra Estate
- Composition:
- 60% Carmenere
- 40% Malbec
- Alcohol:
- 14.5% by volume
- Final pH:
- 3.62
- Total Acidity:
- 5.46 g/l (tartaric acid)
- Residual Sugar:
- 2.13 g/l
Winemaker Comment
This enchanting limited release is a unique exponent of what South America can give to the world by blending the two most distinctive vine varieties of the south cone. The delicate union between 60% Carmenere and 40% Malbec results in a wine with a beautiful deep red colour, fresh aromas, notes of ripe fruit, tobacco and rain forest. The Carmenere delivers a silky spicy edge while the Malbec stands out for its strength and sweetness. On the palate, the wine shows a great length, personality and elegance.
Vintage Note
The 2005&2006 growing season was a cold, dry season. The accumulated heat summation measured in degree days (based on 10°C) between October 2005 and April 2006 was in the Colchagua Valley lower than it was during the 2005 season and over the course of the past seven years.
The primary challenge of the 2006 vintage was the particularly long wait for each variety to reach proper phenolic maturity, which resulted in higher sugar levels in the grapes. As it was particularly cold in the Colchagua valley, the metabolism of the vines was much slower compared to normal years and the harvest started first at the end of April.
As the climatic circumstances were very favourable towards the end of the growing season and due to quality-oriented viticultural measures undertaken, the grapes were very healthy at the moment of harvesting.
Fermentation and Aging
A unique exponent of what South America can give to the world by the delicate union between Carmenere and Malbec.
First the fruit was hand harvested in bins, destemmed, gently crushed and deposited into stainless-steel tanks for whole berry fermentation that began at 28°C. (82.4°F).
Post-fermentation maceration took place during 25 days extracting tannins and contributing to the structure of the wine. The blend was aged and underwent malolactic fermentation in oak barrels (75% American, 25% French) for 14 months for additional complexity. Clarification occurred naturally as the wine settled during aging. Before bottling in October 2007 the wine was only gently filtered.
