Jamessuckling.com | JS 98
Published: Sep 02, 2022

Aromas of herbs and fresh flowers with currants and blackberries follow through to a full body with chewy yet polished and refined tannins. This is so harmonious and beautiful. So real and such a great Chilean. 68% cabernet sauvignon, 24% carmenere, 6% cabernet franc and 2% petit verdot. Give it another two or three years, but already gorgeous.

The Wine Advocate | RP 96
Published: Apr 06, 2023
Drink: 2024-2036

2020 was exceptionally dry, with 75% less rain than usual in the period between May and September, which resulted in an earlier harvest to produce a 2020 Almaviva with 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Carmenère (from Peumo), 6% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, so with no Merlot this time. The process was as careful as possible, without using any bombs, doing manual and optical sorting of the grapes, pressing in small vertical presses and aging of 20 months in French oak barrels, 73% of them new and the rest second use. The wine reached good ripeness with 14.9% alcohol. It still shows the effect of the élevage a bit, with abundant notes of sweet spices, a creamy touch and some smoke. I tasted it next to the 2019, and the wines have a very similar aromatic palette with a clear note of baked peppers. What was amazing in 2020 was that they harvested the Carmenere almost five weeks earlier than they normally would, and the result is not a green wine at all. As in all dry years, the wines show a little more tannic, a little in the style of the 2017—but the 2020 has more tension than the 2017, and the 2017 was more powerful and with a bigger tannic structure. The 2019 had more volume than the 2018, and the 2020 is closer to the 2019 than the 2018. 200,000 bottles produced. It was bottled during the second half of February 2022.

Jancisrobinson.com | JR 16
Published: Sep 19, 2022
Drink: 2023-2033

68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Carmenère, 6% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot.
Deep colour. Sweet and sour on the nose here, blackcurrant cordial, dried herbs and a mulchy bitterness. Very polished in structure, but the wood and herbs are a strong overtone to the dark-cherry and kirsch notes in the fruit. A slightly numbing, clove-like spice to the wood. Long and sweet but marred by a disjointed flavour profile.

Almavivawinery.com

Made from a blend of classic Bordeaux varieties, in which Cabernet Sauvignon predominates, Almaviva is the result of a felicitous encounter between two cultures. Chile offers its soil, its climate and its vineyards, while France contributes its winemaking savoir-faire and traditions. The result is an exceptionally elegant and complex wine. Its launch was a major milestone in the development of Chilean wines, both in Chile itself and in the international market.

Vintage Notes
e vintage 2020 was a magnicent vintage, due to the
particularly dry climatic conditions. A vintage that will be
remembered as one of the most challenging for the team, that with great eort, commitment and dedication, was able to achieve an exceptional result.
Winter was dramatically dry with only 64 mm of rainfall
from May to September 2019, 75% less than the historical average of 256 mm.
During the same winter period, the temperatures were
alternatively lower and higher than usual, resulting in a
budbreak occurring a bit later than expected, mainly during the rst two weeks of a cold October.
e temperatures increased signicantly in November, and stayed at higher levels than usual during all Spring and Summer. roughout the whole vegetative cycle, we hoped for rain and considered initially the drought as the main issue of the vintage. Paradoxically, the heats and the drought became a real blessing as they generated an early ripening process and obliged us to harvest naturally earlier and faster than usual, under the pressure of the incipient pandemic. All our grapes were quickly harvested between March 13th and April 17th, ending 3-4 weeks earlier than usual. e particular conditions of the year concentrated the savors in the berries, producing a wonderful vintage 2020 with lots of fruit, freshness, density and tension.

Tasting Notes 2020:
An appealing dark and vibrant ruby color. e nose is pure and layered, displaying a generous and elegant bouquet of blackberry, ripe cassis and wild strawberry, associated to mineral hints and delicate notes of violet, ink, vanilla and dark chocolate. On the palate, the wine shows an outstanding balance, full of life, density and structure, roundness and savors. Rened, well ripened and coated tannins grant this wine a voluptuous texture, perfectly balanced by a great acidity, as the evolution leaves an impression of plenitude, length and harmony. An elegant and well-built wine from an excellent and memorable dry vintage.

Assemblage:
Cabernet Sauvignon: 68 %
Carmenère: 24 %
Cabernet Franc: 6 %
Petit Verdot: 2 %
Barrel Ageing: 20 Months, New French Oak.