2020 Casa Lapostolle Clos Apalta Proprietary Red

2020 Casa Lapostolle Clos Apalta

99 JS

From the critics:

97 DEC

96 VM

95 RP

Featured Review

A really refined, expressive and layered Clos Apalta with fine olives, incense, cigar box, cocoa powder, Spanish chocolate, pencil shavings, graphite and fine spices. Juicy, bright and full-bodied palate with a fine saline, savory twist. Very long and juicy. 64% carmenere, 19% cabernet sauvignon, 15% merlot and 2% petit verdot. Real finesse from 2020. Drink from 2024. James Suckling

James Suckling | 99 JS

A great effort in the hot and dry 2020, COVID-19 vintage with the earliest harvest ever. The grand vin shows power, richness and tons of fruit but retains a sense of charisma and direction that is so compelling. Bright, forward, sleek and silky, tannins enrobe the palate creating a cushion for the ripe blackcurrants and blueberries, bright acidity and underlying spice to meld together. A large percentage of Carmenere at 64% gives the fragrance and backbone while 19% Cabernet Sauvignon adds texture and depth, 13% Merlot bringing freshness and acidity and 2% Petit Verdot adding spice, colour and richness. Only just beginning to really express itself with liquorice, eucalyptus, figs, plums and a salty-wet stone minerality that comes in on the finish. Despite the intensity, this is layered and well sculpted with tons of pleasure to be had with a few more years ageing. Ageing 27 months in 225L French oak barrels, 85% new, 15% two years old. 3.7pH. Winemaker and viticulturist Andrea Leon kept more leaf coverage, a thicker and higher trellis and natural cover crops during the vintage to moderate the high temperatures. Bottles for this, and the second wine, are now made in Chile as of this vintage and have reduced in weight by 10% in a bid to increase sustainability. Clos Apalta now also featuring its name embossed in the glass at the bottom of the bottle.

Decanter | 97 DEC

The 2020 Blend Clos Apalta is 64% Carménère, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, and 2% Petit Verdot from Apalta, Colchagua. It was aged for 27 months in 85% new barrels. Rich purple in hue. The clearly defined, ripe, complex nose has a leafy character underlined by fruit such as prune and blueberry jam along with hints of pepper, tobacco and rosemary, all packaged in a cedar cigar box. Creamy and broad in the mouth with good volume. The firm flow is channeled by appreciable structure in which polished tannins set the tone for an expansive, indulgent profile. A genuine Michel Rolland interpretation of a year with a rapid ripening season.

Vinous Media | 96 VM

The grand vin 2020 Clos Apalta was produced with a blend of 64% Carmenere, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot from a ripe and warm year. It’s ripe, concentrated, dense and powerful, reflecting the house style and the conditions of the year, with more influence from the élevage than in the second wine, Le Petit Clos. It fermented with indigenous yeasts for five to six weeks, with manual punch-down of the cap in 7,500-liter French oak vats, followed by malolactic in new French oak barrels. The élevage was 27 months in 85% new barrels and 15% second use barrels. It has a creamy, smoky and spicy personality, with notes of sweet spices, such as cinnamon and vanilla and ripe blackberries, and it is quite forward, ripe and showy, with generous oak and 15% alcohol. It’s lush with abundant, fine-grained tannins and a persistent finish. Give it a little more time in bottle, and enjoy with powerful food. 116,700 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2022.

Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RP

Type of Wine	Chile Red : Whether you prefer the potency of an elegant Cabernet Sauvignon, the seductive appeal of Syrah, or the compelling puzzle of a top-notch Pinot Noir, Chile has more to offer than you can even imagine. Their wines are more than eloquent when it comes to terroir expression, and they paint these varietals in a heavenly light.
Varietal	Proprietary Red
Country	Chile : Each winegrowing country tends to have a signature grape variety; one that is both beloved by local vintners and one that usually tells a story. Chile is no exception; its key grape is of French origin and one that was considered extinct. Carmenere was thought to have been completely destroyed after the phylloxera outbreak in the 19th Century, but was rediscovered in Chile in the 1990s. It was a major stroke of luck as it has completely re-invigorated the Chilean wine industry. Chile is one of South America’s most important wine producing countries and is often associated with good-value wines. In the last few decades it has become well known for its world-class reds, commanding attention and top-dollar pricing. Names such as Almaviva, Concha y Toro and Casa Lapostolle have become globally recognized, fueling the country’s economy and it’s already thriving wine industry. Today, the Bordeaux varietal excels in its adopted home and its wide range of terroirs. Since the 1990’s Chilean producers have adapted their vinification methods and extended the ripening period. This has greatly increased the quality of the fruit and the wine produced. Carmenere featured in blends and single variety bottling is continuing to gain traction on the world market. Chile is no “one-trick pony” however, and has made huge strides in competing on the world-level. Bordeaux varieties of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot have always been mainstays, while Malbec, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec have been a supporting cast. Pinot Noir from the cooler parts of Chile is beginning to make an impression and Syrah is increasing in popularity in many wine producing regions. White wine plantings are led by Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Riesling and Semillon, expanding not only the quantity of varietals cultivated, but also many different stylings. This, of course, could not be possible without Chile’s vast array of micro-climates and terroirs. Chile’s topography is very favorable to viticulture and despite the fact that the country is only 100 miles wide, it does spans 2,700 miles of land running north-south. The thin strip of land is situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Andes Mountains which creates an array of climatic variations. The growing regions are greatly influenced by the Pacific and the Antarctic Humboldt currents, which brings cooling breezes to coastal vineyard, while the sheltering presence of the coastal mountain range makes Chile’s Central Valley relatively warm and dry. The high altitudes of the Andes provides a temperate climate in many places that may be otherwise considered hot and arid, but even more importantly, the melt water supplies natural irrigation, supplying the many regions in the foothills with a much needed water source. Chile’s location between the Pacific Ocean and the forbidding barrier of the Andes has allowed the country to be spared from phylloxera. It is ironic that a Bordeaux varietal that was nearly exterminated in Europe, survived this world-wide epidemic, only to help revive its protective host’s viticultural industry. Today, Chile has 194,000 hectares under vine, with an annual wine output of 10.3 million hectoliters, placing it among the top ten wine producing nations in the world.
Subregion	Apalta