Don Melchor Wines: 100 Point Excellence
For more than three decades, Chiles Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon has been considered one of the worlds top wines. A Chilean legacy wine and a favorite of Cabernet Sauvignon collectors, Don Melchor was the first Chilean wine to showcase the countrys profound potential for quality. Its second vintage was the first Chilean wine to be named to Wine Spectators Top 100 Wines of the World, where it has since placed nine times, including three placements in the Top 10.
The current 2018 release maintains and even exceeds, the labels renowned quality, earning a 100-point score from global wine critic James Suckling, who said of the wine, Don Melchor has taken the No. 1 spot with its 2018 vintage in our Chile Top 100 listThe Viña Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon Puente Alto 2018 is all about youth, depth, and energy that unveils the beautiful poise of a top Chilean cabernet sauvignon with its dense but superbly polished tannin and tension, knitting up a full but linear and seamless mouthfeel. It is a wine for the next two decades.
The vintage is a rare release composed of four varieties, in the tradition of First Growth Bordeaux: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot. 2018 shows the expression and complexity of small red fruits and floral notes. On the palate, the wine is full of flavor and elegance, defined by well-integrated tannins and a long, refined finish. The wine has an aging potential of 35 years.
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Which Months Is The Wine Season In Chile
The Chilean wine season falls between March and May.
These are the best months to visit the region, as the Central Valley and all of its beauty is truly exhibited. It is also when the major wine events, festivals and celebrations take place all across the valley.
These regions of Chile offer some truly spectacular travel adventures, traditional cuisine options and some truly welcoming residents.
What Wine Does Maipo Valley Make
Maipo Valley mainly makes red wine from Cabernet Sauvignon.
The areas climate and soil make it ideal for well-structured red wines. In fact, Cabernet Sauvignon is king and can produce spectacular wines. In addition to Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenére, Merlot and Syrah make up most of the other red wines.
Despite red wines being the focal point, the locals also make white wine, mainly from Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
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Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon Do Puente Alto
0900309-2016 | Red
Vintage 2016: Robert Parker 94 | Descorchados 96 | Wine Spectator 94
GRAPE VARIETIES: 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot, 1% MerlotTASTING NOTES: It is very elegant wine presents tremendous aromatic expression with a predominance of small red fruit notes. It starts smooth and is friendly on the palate and continues with perfectly balanced favors and a long finish, where the balance and delicacy of the tannins reappear with great expression of this vintages lively fruit.
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Concha Y Toro Don Melchor
Don Melchor
After more than 30 years, Don Melchor has reached a solid position that enables it to face new challenges, highlighting its maturity and ability to express its own identity through Viña Don Melchor.
This identity is built upon a base of three fundamental pillarsits impeccable heritage and history, the peerless conditions of its terroir, and the deep understanding and expertise in the making of the Don Melchor wine.
95 points Wine Enthusiast
“A full, spicy nose is packed to the brim with smoky, toasty oak and earthy black-fruit aromas. A ripe, full and chewy palate is smooth in feel, while this classic Cabernet from Puente Alto in the Maipo Valley tastes of coffee, rich chocolate, toasty spices and blackberry. A lush, bold finish runs long, indicating that this will age well. Hold through 2040. Fetzer Vineyards.”
94 points Wine Advocate
“Marking its 30th anniversary, the 2017 Don Melchor was produced 30 years after the initial 1987. This is a wine that transcends vintages and shows great regularity, always combining elegance and power, with subtle mintiness and superb elegance. It’s juicy, textured and velvety. This is a superb showing in 2017, a warm year and a fresh wine. Bravo! And the volume is not small156,000 bottles were produced. It was bottled in December 2018. 94+”
95 points Wine Spectator
99 points James Suckling
Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
Full-bodied
- game
Full-bodied
- game
- INGREDIENTS DECLARED BY THE PRODUCERContains sulphites
Red wines are best served slightly below room temperature, at 1618°C. Chilling a bottle from room temperature to the perfect serving temperature takes about half an hour in a fridge.
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Review: 2019 Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon Puente Alto Vineyard
Its hard to believe that its been 9 years since weve reviewed Don Melchor, a semi-cult wine from Chiles Concha y Toro empire, a wine which launched in 1987. This vintage is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot.
One can generate few complaints in tasting Don Melchor, this wine showcasing all of the brands immense charms. Thick with chocolate, vanilla, and dense black fruit, it is never tannic for a second, allowing a whip of licorice candy into the mix. Violets are in attendance, as is a touch of lavender. Rounded and mouth-filling but surprisingly mild, the wine is immediately engaging and difficult to put down, those chocolate notes feeling almost unreal as the wine winds its way toward a lush, satiny finish. The main shift with this release: Its instantly drinkable Im not sure any amount of time in cellar will improve things further.
What Makes Chilean Wine So Affordable
Chilean wine is considered cheap for several reasons.
When comparing South American wine to more traditional European or new world wines, their prices are significantly lower than other countries, despite the astounding quality.
There are three major influences that affect the price and allow Chilean wine to be sold for so much less
- The cost of labor especially in the vineyards are significantly less than Europe or America. In fact, the labor costs are 1/3 or of countries like France and Germany. This is, unfortunately, largely to do with illegal labor practises too.
- The cost of land and their standard of living is significantly lower than the USA and most European countries.
- Chile has to be able to compete with larger producers in the USA and Europe, so they will cut their prices in order to compete with the bigger names.
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Why Is The Maipo Valley Good For Winemaking
Maipo Valley is good for winemaking because of its heat and altitude.
One of the regions main reasons for producing highly celebrated wines is the climate the vines are exposed to. The daytime, which provides extremely high temperatures, allows the grapes to ripen well. However, the vines need cooler temperatures to ensure the grapes are balanced with sufficient acidity. Thus, the higher altitudes, which can reach up to 2500 feet , ensures cooler temperatures. In addition, the vast difference between daytime and night-time temperatures slows down the ripening time, providing higher quality wines.
The soil also creates challenging growing conditions for the vines, which have struggled to get to a water source. As a result, their grapes tend to provide concentrated and intense wines.
Maipo Valley Is Arguably One Of The Most Powerful Wine Regions In Chile Responsible For High
As one of the most important wine regions in Chile, Maipo Valley is responsible for the countrys best red wines. Not only has the local wines become synonymous with prestige, but also will structure and complexity. While the locals planted the first vines in the 1540s, it wasnt until almost 200 years later that the wine industry truly took off.
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Don Melchor Chiles Best Cabernet Sauvignon
Wine Enthusiast has awarded the 2015 vintage of Don Melchor an outstanding 94 points, the highest rating it has ever given to a Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon.
Don Melchor 2015 has received a remarkable score of 94 points in American magazine Wine Enthusiast, one of the worlds most influential specialized publications. The score, published in the magazines latest Advance Buying Guide, makes Don Melchor its highest-ranked Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon.
Don Melchor 2015 the 29th vintage since the label was launched stands out for its unmistakable character and exceptional quality, and is described by master winemaker Enrique Tiradoas one of the best in all of that illustrious history. The wine is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, and 1 % Petit Verdot, aged for 15 months in French oak barrels.
Indeed, the Don Melchor line has been receiving the highest awards consistently since its beginnings, cementing its position as one of the finest Cabernet Sauvignons to be produced in Chile, or indeed anywhere in the world.
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The Central Valley Of Chile Is A Charming Key Wine
The Chilean Central Valley, which should not be mistaken for the Central Valley of California, is a South American area that includes some of the countrys largest regions, from the Maipo Valley in the north, to Maule Valley in the South. The California Central Valley, however, is a stretched-out region in North America, which includes important regions of Sierra Foothills AVA and Lodi AVA.
The Central Valley is the most important, volume-producing region of Chile. Because of its size, there are several climates and soil-types that can be found in the Central Valley, which allows for a vast variety of grapes to thrive here.
Generally, the Central Valleys climate is relatively cool with dry summers and mild winters. This creates the ideal circumstances to grow just about anything which is why the Central Valley is the major producing area of Chile. Although the region often experiences droughts, floods, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, the vines are capable of overcoming it all.
The Distinctive Character Ofdon Melchor
The beauty of the composition in Don Melchor is the intermingling of the flavors, aromas, and emotions produced by the different parcels of Cabernet Sauvignon.It is bringing together, in a balanced way, the expression of each of the parcels. It is finding the balance that enables the expression of a place, a soil, the Andes Mountains in a single wine.
Winemaker Enrique Tirado is one of the most influential figures in the national wine industry.For more than 20 years he has been in charge of Don Melchor, Chiles first icon wine and a true benchmark of the variety at the global level.
3 vintages among the Top 10 Best Wines of the World
2001 – 2003 – 2010
9 vintages among the Top 100 Best Wines of the World
1988 – 1993 – 2000 – 2001 – 2003 – 2005 -2010 – 2012- 2014
100 points, the perfect score
Don Melchor 2018
7 vintages among the Top 100 Wines of the World
2010 – 2012 – 2014 – 2015 – 2017 – 2018 – 2019
6 times among the 100 Best Wines of the Andes.
Don Melchor is as distinctive as it is powerful, with rich, earthy aromas and flavors of dried red fruits, cedar and spice reflecting a remarkable combination of Bordeaux-style finesse and fruit-driven purity. Its consistently elegant profile is supported by succulent tannins and firm acidity, giving it the stuffing to age and gain complexity. Don Melchors one of the worlds great collectible Cabernets.
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Where In Chile Is The Central Valley Located
The Central Valley is precisely in the middle of Chile.
The Central Valley is located directly across one of Chiles other key wine regions, Mendoza. The Central Valley includes four important wine regions, including Maipo Valley, Rapel, Curico and Maule Valley.
It is these regions that are able to produce iconic Bordeaux varieties, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc, along with Syrah and Chardonnay. Interestingly, the cooler areas of the Central Valley are used to grow varieties that are often seen in Germany, like Riesling and Gewürztraminer.
