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Uutiset
There is a subtle complexity on the nose with currant, berry, fresh herb and wet earth aromas. Cut fresh flowers, too. Full body, dense and powerful. Incredible character here with such purity and polish. It goes on for minutes. Formed, sculptured yet soulful. A monumental wine for Chile. Unbelievable. More powerful than the 2014 which was 100 points. A blend of 46% carmenere, 30% cabernet sauvignon, 19% merlot and 5% cabernet franc. Made from biodynamically grown grapes. Better in 2022.
100/100 James Suckling
Viinin Kuvailu
The Story
The Marnier Lapostolle family founded Lapostolle in 1994 with the goal of creating world-class wines by combining the superb terroir of Chile with their French winemaking philosophy. Clos Apalta was introduced in 1997 and awarded the #1 wine of the year by Wine Spectator in 2008. It has consistently received critical praise and is widely considered one of the world's finest wines.
Apalta is located at 170 Kilometers South West from Santiago in the Colchagua Valley. The Vineyard is situated on a North to South exposure, which is quite rare in Chile. The Tinguiririca river rests on one side and the hills from the Coastal Cordillera surround the vineyard like a horseshoe on the other. They are both integral in forming this unique terroir. This geography is responsible for the conditions that ensure balance for our vines and a slow ripening for the grapes. At sunrise and sunset, the Cordillera block the sun’s rays, limiting the vines exposure to intense sunshine and the river has a cooling influence on the climate.
Apalta has a special meso-climate that is different from the rest of Colchagua Valley. Its climate could be described as semi-dry Mediterranean; with a winter only rainy season and a long dry summer season. Rains are highly concentrated during the winter reaching over 550 mm in on average. During the growing season (octapril), we have beautiful days and warm temperatures with no rain due to the height of the Coastal Mountains which partially block the cold influence of the Pacific Ocean. There are cool breezes in the afternoons and the night-time temperatures are cold. We benefit from a wide temperature fluctuation between night and day; which is a key quality factor for color and tannins in reds. Slow maturation allows the grapes to reach their ideal maturity with high concentration and character.
Wine Information
The winemaking philosophy at Clos Apalta is to reflect the terroir by hand-crafting a wine mostly based on Carmenere. Hand harvested in small cases of 14 kilos, the grapes are 100% manually de-stemmed, then gravity fed in French oak vats. Then nature does its work, allowing native yeasts to slowly ferment the must into wine, under strict temperature control (in order not to exceed 28° C). Extraction were conducted through pigeage, with macerations lasting for about 4 weeks. The young new wine was racked straight into new French oak barrels, by gravity. Malolactic happened in barrels, where the wine stayed for 28 months, ageing patiently. The wine is bottled by gravity without any treatment or filtration.