Casas del Bosque Gran Reserva Pinot Noir 2014
Ruby red in colour. On the nose intense aromas of red plum, bramble and cedar dominate with just a hint of nutmeg. In the mouth black cherry, allspice and a touch of leather are all in evidence. A well integrated oak backbone is backed-up by abundant, well-rounded tannins imparting excellent structure and length.
93 pts James Suckling
A dense and rich pinot with dried strawberry and raspberry character. Bright acidity. Full body, so much great fruit. Tight and beautiful. Needs two to three years to soften.
91 pts Vinous (JR)Vivid red. Aromas of fresh red berries, allspice and candied rose develop a deeper cola note in the glass. Zesty red currant and bitter cherry flavors deepen and turn sweeter with air, picking up a suggestion of spicecake. Closes energetic, focused and long, delivering resonating spiciness, subtle tannins and a lingering floral pastille quality.
90 pts Wine Spectator
Pinot Noir Casablanca Valley Gran Reserva 2014 Offers lots of cedary accents to the fresh, concentrated and well-integrated flavors of dried cherry, wild plum and pomegranate. Dried savory herb hints on the finish are flanked by slate and mineral details. Drink now through 2020. 3,000 cases made. –KM
On arrival at the winery all grapes were first subjected to a whole cluster selection. This was followed by destemming (without crushing) and then an individual berry selection before being gravity fed to small open-top tanks. A 8 day cold soak (at 5ºC/41ºF) ensued after which time the must was warmed and inoculated with selected yeasts (Assmanhaussen and RC212) and fermented during 18 days with temperatures peaking at 28ºC/82ºF. During fermentation the vats were hand-plunged twice daily in order to extract the ideal amount of tannin and colour. Following the completion of fermentation the wine was drained off (after a total maceration time of 26 days) and put to barrel. The wine was aged for a total of 11 months in French oak barrels (25% of which were new, and 75% of which were second and third use) before being bottled without filtration. Vineyard: All fruit was sourced from our own vineyard – located within the coolest, westernmost reaches of the Casablanca Valley. Sourced from 10 to 13 year old hillside blocks planted with the “Valdivieso” field selection on a red clay mixed with decomposed granite. The blocks used in this blended were cropped at an average of 4.5 tonnes per hectare (1.8t/acre).