Description

Urmeneta Reserva Carmenere 2023 is a wine for lovers of generous, smooth and easy Cabernet Blends. Dark fruits – plum, cherry, cassis – are evident initially. There are whiffs of dried herbs, pepper, and oak if you sniff hard enough. Smooth, generous, supple and balanced. A hint of savouriness gives the wine an extra dimension. One ot drink nowish with a meat heavy dish..

Urmeneta is an old winery, founded in 1860 by a man who is just as famous for Chile’s industrial rise as he is for great wine. The winery is still operational and striving to honour the heritage and quality.

Carmenere

Carmenere is a red grape originally from Bordeaux, but has almost been removed from the vineyards entirely. Luckily for the grape, it has found a home in Chile.

Deep colour, red fruits, spices, softer tannins than Cabernet and a medium body. It is often made into a rich wine, tasting of currants or raisins. This distinctive nose makes it perceptible in blends too.

Chile Wine

Chile has had vines since the 1500s. But it wasn’t until the 1990s that they became a real player in the international wine market.

The climate here is near ideal, with consistently warm, dry weather. The Andes provides irrigation via snow melts. Proof of the idyllic terroir is the amount of French investment and know-how that has made it into Chile.

The top wines are generally Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet blends, and they are on par with great Bordeaux. But there is a whole range of magnificent wines to taste from the international varieties. They have made Carmenere a particular flagship after finding that about half of their Merlot was actually Carmenere.