Tricky to grow carmenere is now Chile’s go to grape

Previously misidentified as merlot, carmenere can withstand drought, writes Rose Murray Brown

Heatwaves and bushfires were very much on the agenda when I visited Chile last month as winemakers prepared for their 2024 harvest in blistering heat and drought, with a plume of smoke from the devastating fires lingering over coastal hills.

Heat and drought are the greatest challenges in the wine world, but in Chile carmenere thrives in these conditions.

It is now considered Chile’s flagship variety. It is a lateripener, needing warm sun to ripen and develop its extraordinarily peppery, spicy and savoury flavours and seems to tolerate dry conditions.

Bizarrely carmenere has been planted in Chile since 1850, with cuttings transported from south-west France before phylloxera hit, but no-one knew what it was there. Only since the mid-1990s have Chilean winemakers discovered there had been a mix-up with merlot (this was common apparently). Much of what Chileans thought was an unusually late-ripening merlot vine in their vineyards – was actually carmenere.

Today it is considered quintessentially Chilean, but actually making it has been a challenge.

Firstly – it needs the right site with well drained stony clay soils. Secondly – it needs to be treated differently from merlot as it is very different in its vineyard characteristics and flavour.

Early carmenere varietals were not very intense with too many green notes – whilst other wines were far too high in alcohol, jammy and overripe. Techniques like green harvesting and leaf thinning are now used to avoid this.

Making carmenere seems to be trial and error, but after 30 years we are starting to see more elegant and attractive examples of this grape as a single varietal wine.

Cachapoal: Vina Undurraga ‘TH’ Carmenere 2021

Peumo in western Cachapoal close to the Pacific makes elegant carmenere; good introduction to the grape with cherry and chocolate notes and delightfully soft, smooth texture.

£20, Strictly Wine

Colchagua: Casa Silva ‘Los Lingues’ Carmenere 2022

Rich, powerful, sweetly fruited example with spicy blackberry flavours, hints of balsamic with peppery twist to finish.

£15.99, De Burgh Wines

Colchagua: Matetic ‘Corralillo’ Carmenere 2020

From sheltered vineyards in Apalta, this is intensely fruity, with spicy undertones and smoky oak notes (18 months in French oak); freshened with a touch of San Antonio syrah in the blend.

£20-£22, L’art du Vin; Cork &

Cask

Maipo: De Martino ‘Alto de Piedras’ Single Vineyard Carmenere 2021 *

Our joint top scorer in the tasting ; loved its elegance and depth, hints of balsamic and soft velvet smooth tannins. £27, Virgin Wines; The Wine Society

Colchagua: Casa Silva ‘S7’ Carmenere 2022

Deep, dark plummy fruit, silky soft tannins, sweet new oak with bitter-sweet finish. £27.50, Field & Fawcett; Sandhams Wine; Stainton Wine

Colchagua: Lapostolle ‘Cuvee Alex’ Carmenere 2022

Beautifully ripe fruit with textured tannins and silky mouthfeel showing the quality of sheltered Apalta vineyards for carmenere.

£27.50, www.lapostollewines. co.uk

Colchagua: Maturana Wines ‘MW’ Carmenere 2018*

Superb example from carmenere grown in Marchigue, western Colchagua. Loved its depth of dark fruit, peppery, black chocolate and savoury notes; one of the best Chilean carmeneres I tasted. Soon available in the UK at Corney & Barrow

Join Rose’s Escorted Wine Tour to Hungary in September, www. rosemurraybrown.com