One of the first varietal Carmeneres J sourced from an alluvial terrace of the Maipo River. [ … ] The nose is balsamic with some notes of camphor and a stony minerality [ … ] i aromas of black raspberry and blackberry! graphite! something earthy and a little minty. The palate is medium-bodied with great tension!ultra-fine tannins and good freshness.

Intense cherry, dark berry and floral aromas, with smoky mineral and cracked pepper accents that gain power with air. At once rich and lively, offering sappy bitter cherry and black raspberry flavors and a hint of musky herbs. Becomes sweeter with air and finishes long and gently tannic, leaving smoke and subtle vanilla and mocha notes behind. This wine was aged in 100% new French oak.

It has a bright color and an intense aroma of paprika, smoked meat, ripe red cherries with dusty, fine-grained tannins, supple, with flavors of tobacco and spices, balanced acidity and good length. This is a superb example of ripe Carmenère, avoiding all the green aromas but keeping the acidity. I wish more Carmenères were like this! Drink now-2018.

The 2010 Single Vineyard Carmenere “Alto de Piedras” is sourced from the 5.5 hectare Isla de Maipo organic vineyard and aged for 16 months in used French oak. The nose is well defined with dark cherry, pomegranate, boysenberry and tobacco notes. The palate is medium-bodied with dusty blackberry and red cherry on the entry: an attractive fleshy texture and dusty black fruit laced with soy and tobacco towards the masculine, but has a harmonious and sophisticated finish. It sits nicely between the Old World and New. Drink now-2017.

Cherries, cinnamon and berries on the nose. A layer of coffee beans and meat character too. Well-balanced tannins and acidity. Elegant finish. Drink now.

The 2009 Carmenere Alto de Piedras Single Vineyard spent 14 months in new French oak. Aromas of dried herbs, exotic set the stage for an elegant, fleshy, plush wine that delivers outstanding concentration, depth, and balance. It has enough structure to evolve for 2-3 years but can be approached now.

A big, earthy type of wine with a ton of ripeness and heft. Smells like pure black olive, earth and smoked meat. The palate is tight but friendly as it delivers big doses of herb, tea, chocolate and black fruit flavors. About as deep and long in the mouth as this variety gets; proof that Maipo can produce the occasional excellent Carmenere.

This dark red is nicely framed with roasted tobacco and loam notes, with a core of crushed plum, steeped black currant and sage in reserve. The finish is muscular, but rounded and integrated, with the loamy edge lingering. Drink now through 2013.

Opaque ruby. Deeply scented, pungent aromas of blackcurrant, blueberry and cola are enhanced by notes of mocha and cracked pepper in the background. Big, chewy and densely packed but surprisingly lithe, offering smoky black and blue fruit flavors and good mineral spine. Tannins build with air and add grip to a long, smoky, appealingly sweet finish. I’d hold off opening this for at least a couple of more years.

Deep violet color.  Cherry-vanilla, cola and blackberry preserves on the nose, with complicating floral and spice nuances.  Supple, deeply concentrated dark berry liqueur flavors are framed by velvety tannins and show a strong oak influence supported by fruit.  The finish repeats the cola and spice notes and lingers with very good tenacity.  Emphatically modern and drinkable now.

De Martino’s 2007 Carmenere Alto de Piedras was sourced from an organically farmed vineyard and aged for 14 months in French oak. A glass-coating opaque purple color, it exhibits an expressive nose of Asian spices, underbrush, lavender, black cherry, and black raspberry. Medium- to full-bodied on the palate, it is a dense, velvety-textured, plush, concentrated offering that has enough structure to evolve for 2-3 years. Enjoy this from 2012 to 2019.

A powerful, dark and alluring specimen with chocolate, olive paste, road tar and blackberry aromas.  The palate is tight, rubbery, tannic and fierce, with juicy, pumped-up boysenberry and dark plum flavors.  Shows its varietal side, meaning herbs and olive, on the finish.  Not spectacular but very good.

Dark and winey, with lovely mouthfeel and purity to the raspberry and plum sauce notes that glide through on silky tannins. Alluring black tea, tobacco and braised chestnut notes flash through the finish, boding well for cellaring. Drink now through 2012.

De Martino Single Vineyard Alto de Piedras Carmenere 2007

Grown on an alluvial terrace of the Maipo River, this Carmenère is potent and ripe, its deep black fruit flavor floating over a soft, voluptuous texture.

The 2006 Carmenère “Alto de Piedras” is sourced from a single, organically farmed vineyard. The wine spent 15 months in French oak. Purple-colored, the nose delivers wood smoke, cedar, blueberry, and black cherry aromas leading to a layered wine with plenty of savory fruit, excellent spice, and 2-3 years of cellaring potential. It should be at its best from 2010 to 2018.

Purple in color and ultra rich, with aromas of oak and dark fruit. This single-vineyard specimen is extremely bold. It’s creamy and grabby in the mouth, with mocha and lactic notes on the finish.

Shows the juicy fruit and loamy underpinning of Maipo, with black cherry, currant, coffee and cocoa notes stretched through the finish. Drink now through 2010.

Deep violet color.  Cherry-vanilla, cola and blackberry preserves on the nose, with complicating floral and spice nuances.  Supple, deeply concentrated dark berry liqueur flavors are framed by velvety tannins and show a strong oak influence supported by fruit.  The finish repeats the cola and spice notes and lingers with very good tenacity.  Emphatically modern and drinkable now.

A powerful, dark and alluring specimen with chocolate, olive paste, road tar and blackberry aromas.  The palate is tight, rubbery, tannic and fierce, with juicy, pumped-up boysenberry and dark plum flavors.  Shows its varietal side, meaning herbs and olive, on the finish.  Not spectacular but very good.

Dark and winey, with lovely mouthfeel and purity to the raspberry and plum sauce notes that glide through on silky tannins. Alluring black tea, tobacco and braised chestnut notes flash through the finish, boding well for cellaring. Drink now through 2012.