Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Carmen Carmenere 2003 wine review by (PB)

This Chilean red from the Rapel Valley is dark and inky in color looking more like a Shiraz than a Carmenere (pronounced--Kar-men-YAIR) but on the pour it is gargantuan with blackberry and eucalyptus aromas all laying on a deep bed of green herbal leaves.

In the mouth it is better than I would have predicted by the bouquet with a touch of vanilla and strong eucalyptus flavors again -–almost too much but somewhat intriguing. This wine is tightly wound with a good foundation of tannins but too firm at the moment and it is a bit "hot" (meaning, alcoholic). Note--the purpose of breathing a red wine is that often times, allowing the wine to be exposed to air for a half hour or so will cause these strong harsh tendencies to mellow out; but not always...

With some air, the tannins relax and this wine is all eucalyptus and blackberries–if this is terroir, this wine would be readily identifiable by even an amateur. It is distinctive but the eucalyptus is just too much! Still, I have to say, I kind of liked it! Raise a glass.

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