Carmenere
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2026
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Roasted pork loin, grilled lamb chops, or traditional beef empanadas.
✨ Technical Specifications
The story of Chilean Carmenere is one of the wine world's most captivating tales of mistaken identity. Originally a prominent blending grape in Bordeaux, it was wiped out in Europe by the phylloxera epidemic in the late 19th century and presumed extinct. Decades later, in 1994, French ampelographer Jean-Michel Boursiquot discovered that vines in Chile long thought to be a late-ripening clone of Merlot were actually the lost Carmenere. Casa Silva has played a pioneering role in the modern renaissance of this grape, conducting extensive research to understand its micro-terroirs. This Central Valley bottling captures the classic, approachable essence of the variety, shaped by the region's warm days and cooling breezes from the Andes, resulting in a wine with supple tannins and rich, dark fruit flavors.
🍾 About the Producer
Viña Casa Silva was founded in 1997 by Mario Pablo Silva and his father, Mario Silva Cifuentes, formalizing a viticultural legacy in the Colchagua Valley initiated in 1892 by French ancestor Emilio Bouchon. Headquartered around historic 19th-century cellars in Angostura, the family oversees estate vineyards spanning diverse terroirs across Chile's Central Valley and coastal cordilleras, notably Angostura, Lolol, and the cool, maritime-influenced Paredones just kilometers from the Pacific Ocean. Soils range from decomposed granite and alluvial gravels to fine sandy loam, providing exceptional drainage. Casa Silva operates under 100% certification by the Wines of Chile Sustainability Code, coupling precise parcel selection with temperature-controlled stainless steel vinification and measured French oak aging. Renowned for championing heritage grape varieties alongside classic styles, the estate produces benchmarks including its expressive Sauvignon Gris, crisp coastal Sauvignon Blancs, and vibrant Viognier bottlings, seamlessly translating Colchagua's varied meso-climates into balanced, aromatically complex whites.
🍇 Grapes
Carmenere
🍷 ABV
13.5-14%