Casas del Bosque Reserva Carmenere 2014
91 pts Vinous (JR)
(raised entirely in used French oak barrels) Bright purple. Fresh cherry and blueberry on the highly perfumed nose, joined by building licorice and mocha nuances. Concentrated and alluringly sweet, showing no rough edges to the sweet black and blue fruit and spicecake flavors. In a lush, open-knit style, delivering impressive finishing punch, harmonious tannins and a suave, lingering floral quality.
89 pts Wine Spectator
A well-structured and juicy style, with fresh-crushed red fruit flavors, accented by a deep well of savory herbal notes. Medium-grained tannins show on the spicy, mineral-filled finish. Drink now through 2019. 5,000 cases made. –KM
88 pts James Suckling
A light and simple red with rose petal and dark berry character. Medium body, delicate tannins and fresh finish. Drink now.
After being hand harvested the grapes were then crushed and destemmed to stainless steel tanks. The must was then warmed and inoculated with selected yeasts and fermented during 12 days with temperatures peaking at 33ºC/91ºF. Following the completion of fermentation the must was subjected to an additional 5 days of post fermentation maceration (to give a total of 17 days total skin contact). The wine was then pressed off skins and put to French oak barrels for 10 months during which time it was racked twice: once in the spring when it was first sulphured (following the completion of malolactic fermentation) and then once again shortly before bottling.