2021 Almaviva EPU

Their second wine, the 2021 Epu, comes from the same terroir and vineyard in Puente Alto as Almaviva, but from younger vines, averaging around 12 years old. The 2021 blend is 80% TP3T Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% TP3T Carmenere, and 5% TP3T Merlot (no Cabernet Franc this year). It has a ripe, heady nose, with 14,68% alcohol (15% TP3T on the label), soft acidity, and intense notes of red pepper, ripe blackberries, and cassis, with some oak spice. It matured for a year in French barriques—only 10% new and 9% second-use. It has slightly less structure and softer tannins, making it more approachable than previous years—a profile that seems to be the signature of the year. It's medium to full-bodied, with velvety, more polished tannins, and is more delicate and less concentrated, with more finesse. But I find them quite homogeneous and regular, this year without raisins or dried grapes, and in this vintage it feels open and expressive. 80,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in January 2023.