Almaviva Epu 2019 (750ML)

94 JS / 93+ WA / 93 WS / 92 VM / 92 WE / 92 JA

#91 Wine Spectator Top 100 2022

Aromas of blueberries, blackberries and fresh flowers. Very cool and pure. Medium-bodied with fine, linear and very integrated tannins that are compressed and silky-textured. New second wine of Almaviva. Needs time to open. Try after 2024.- James Suckling

The first truly international release of the second wine is going to be the 2019 Epu, which has changed image and label, looking a little more like Almaviva, and is going to be sold through the Bordeaux négoce. 2019 was a very dry vintage, and the blend is 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Carmenere, 2% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc with slightly higher alcohol than 2018 and with lower acidity, matured in used barriques for one year. In terms of freshness, the wine is quite similar to the 2018 that I tasted next to it, obviously a little younger, quite intense and fruit-driven, spicy and herbal, with a creamy texture and fine-grained tannins. It's a second wine, but they also want to do something different and Epu is perhaps a little more classical, perhaps this is more Bordeaux and Almaviva is more Chilean. It was bottled in December 2020 and January 2021. - Luis Gutierrez, Wine Advocate

This red offers ripe plum and cherry cordial flavors up front, revealing layers of nuance as it unfolds, including intriguing orange zest, Calabrian chili and olive notes. Presents a fresh, minerally acidity midpalate that pushes all the flavors to the finish, with zesty but firm tannins and echoes back to the opening flavors. Shows tremendous length. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2028. 3,500 cases made, 500 cases imported. —MaryAnn Worobiec, Wine Spectator

The 2019 Bordeaux Blend EPU is a blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Carménère, 2% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc from Puente Alto, Maipo, aged for 12 months in French barrels. Vivid purple in color. The intense nose offers blackberry and black currant notes with hints of jam, pepper and balsamic aromas. Indulgent initially with good intensity and fruitiness. The polished Maipo tannins keep it juicy in spite of the 15% alcohol, filling the mouth with flavor-Joaquin Hidalgo, Vinous Media

Inviting, the nose offers red berry aromas and hints of thyme and vanilla. It's full-bodied and well-structured, with silky tannins and good acidity. Hints of thyme and oak are followed by red fruit flavors. It finishes long. Jesica Vargas, Wine Enthusiast

Second wine of Almaviva, released through the Place for the first time in 2021. There is spiced damson and blackcurrant fruit, dark chocolate shavings and a sweet, ripe feel overall, plenty of glamour and impact, but traces also of a hot, dry season with a touch of heat on the finish. This needs time to open, so although there is no problem with drinking soon, it will really benefit from time in a carafe to soften the tannins.-Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux