Escudo Rojo Carmenere Reserva
WHY WE LOVE IT
- Having disappeared from Bordeaux vineyards in the 19th century, Carmenere has made a miraculous recovery, becoming Chile’s signature grape. Escudo Rojo Carmenere is sourced from a selection of the best parcels in the Rapel Valley, giving the wine all its character and intensity.
- This wine comes from the “Valle de Colchagua”, in the central part of Chile 200 km south of Santiago. The vineyard, extending from the Andes Mountains to the Pacific coast, has a Mediterranean climate particularly well-suited to the development of the Carmenere grape.
- Baron Philippe de Rothschild Maipo Chile’s winemakers have chosen “Valle de Colchagua” vineyards for the variety of their soils and the amplitude of their temperature differences. Two types of soil have been chosen to favor the full expression of the Carmenere grape: deep clay soil for the concentration and power of the fruit, and gravelly clay soil of the “maicillo” type, which brings elegance and minerality.
Varietal Composition: 100% Carmenere
Elaboration: The grapes are hand-picked then brought to the Baron Philippe de Rothschild Maipo Chile bodega, in the heart of the Maipo Valley. Combining wood and steel in a distinctive architectural style, the bodega has state-of-the-art equipment that also respects the great winemaking traditions. Escudo Rojo Carmenere is vinified in the Bordeaux manner, favoring extraction of the fruit and a supple, well-balanced tannic structure. The wine is matured in one-year-old oak barrels for six to eight months before bottling. 30% new oak and 70% 1-2 year old oak barrels.
Tasting Notes: The nose opens on ripe black berry fruit aromas, joined on airing by notes of roasted coffee beans and black pepper. From a highly expressive attack on the black fruit found on the nose, the peppery notes that emerged with airing return on a midpalate which combines power with heft. The finish lingers on an intense array of black fruit, spice and roasted coffee bean flavors.
PRESS
2018 – 92 James Suckling
2019 – 93 James Suckling
2021 – 90 Wine Spectator | 92 James Suckling
PRODUCER BACKGROUND
Located at Buin-Maipo, 45 kilometers south of Santiago in the famous Maipo Valley, the Baron Philippe de Rothschild Maipo Chile bodega stands in its own 63-hectare (156-acre) vineyard. The wines are made, matured, bottled and packaged at the estate under the supervision of a French winemaker and under the control of an in-house laboratory. For each of its wines, the winery selects the best parcels in Chile’s most highly reputed valleys in order to make wines which consistently combine refinement and character. Regular sources of supply and constant quality are also guaranteed by long-term contracts with partner winegrowers, especially further south, in the Rapel Valley. A rigorous parcel selection procedure has been created, with each parcel being tested for three years in order to ensure that the grapes are of sufficiently high quality to be used to make Escudo Rojo.