Review: In Situ Reserva Carménère

Last week I published a post about Luma Chequén Gran Reserva Carménère and highlighted the new approach many producers in Chile are taking with Carménère. In a nutshell, producers are embracing the pyrazine qualities of Carménère to showcase the true essence of this grape. So as not to repeat myself, you can read that previous post for more perspective on this.

While new styles of Carménère are emerging, that doesn’t mean there is one “right” style. Rather, you can think of Carménère as one of those grapes that can have multiple expressions. It’s a grape that producers can grow in different terroirs and vinify with different techniques in order to reveal its various personalities.

The Carménère I’m exploring today leans toward what some would call the “old” style. In this case, “old” means a decade ago, not generations ago. And it doesn’t mean outdated. It’s a style of Carménère where the pyrazines are less prominent and it features a big, bold palate that showcases rich fruit flavors.

This wine is produced by Viña San Esteban. The vineyards are in the Aconcagua wine region, in the foothills to the Andes mountain range and along the Aconcagua river. This region is more inland than some other Chilean wine regions and features gravel soils and warm daytime temperatures with a strong diurnal shift, which is a fancy way to say the temperatures drop significantly at night. Those warm daytime and cool nighttime temperatures help ripen the fruit while preserving acidity. This is part of the terroir expressed in this version of Carménère — the well-ripened grapes result in a big, bold wine.

In addition to Carménère, the winemaker added a splash of Cabernet Sauvignon, amounting to just 5%.  This adds some complexity to the wine. It was also aged for 12 months in a combination of French and American oak, which add to the spice features of this wine.

Tasting Notes

The aromas from this wine are a nice balance of fruit and spice, offering fragrances like cherry, black raspberry, black pepper and cedar. The palate delivers juicy cherry and black raspberry flavors, also with spicy notes of black pepper and a hint of chili pepper. The acidity is vibrant, making this a good wine to pair with fatty foods. It has moderate tannins, giving a softness to the mouthfeel. It finishes fairly long with cherry and spice flavors.

Wine: In Situ Reserva Carménère
Varieties: 95% Carménère, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2021
Alcohol: 13%
Rating: 88
Average price: $13
Disclosure: This wine was received as a media sample.