Clos Apalta 2012, Carménère-Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon, Domaine Bournet-Lapostolle, Colchagua, Chile

In the distant 1827 Jean-Baptiste Lapostolle, near Versailles, created a fruit liqueur, where 50 years later his granddaughter’s husband, Louis Alexander Marnier (the well-known Grand Marnier liqueur), coming from a family of wine merchants in Sancerre, was fascinated by the area of Cognac and it all started right then and there.

by Aris Sklavenitis, Oenologist

In 1994 Alexandra Marnier Lapostolle, started a new adventure this time in Chile and in just a few years created an iconic wine, Clos Apalta, a wine whose grapes grow near the Andes, in the unique terroir of the Apalta Valley, next from the Tinguiririca River in the foothills of the Cordillera mountain range, with the first year of production being as far back as 1997. I recently tasted a vertical (when you taste the same wine in different years) of Clos Apalta, the years tested were 2020, 2015, 2012 and 2010. Truly a consistent wine regardless of the year, Clos Apalta has particular concentration, depth and complexity from its youth. The “big” wines of Chile are wines that are so concentrated that you can “cut them with a fork”! After this little vertical test I would like to share with you my favorite year, 2012.

Clos Apalta 2012 comes from pro-phylloxeric vineyards and is biodynamically certified, with the harvest being done by hand and the fermentation starting with native yeasts, while the varietals of the blend are 66% Carménère, 19% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon. Its color is deep, with great aromatic intensity, it has just started to show the first signs of aging after 12 years in the bottle, dried fruits, ripe juicy black fruits, notes of sweet spices, coffee, chocolate, tobacco and oak. In the mouth it is dry, with balanced acidity, rich but soft tannins and full body. A wine that every wine lover must have drunk once in his life. When you consider that after 12 years it is just starting to show the first signs of aging, you can understand its aging potential… put it next to an asado and enjoy!

Score: 18.5/20

20 – Really excellent
19 – Top wine
18 – A superior quality wine with particular depth
17 – A superior quality wine
16 – A high quality wine with aging potential
15 – A wine that is pleasant to drink, without flaws