The 23rd edition of Descorchados, the wine guide by the renowned Chilean critic Patricio Tapia, announces its results and highlights several wines of our group.
Viña Morandé
House of Morandé 2018 – 97 points Ranked among the Best Reds and the Best Red Blends
This excellent wine is backed up by its long history. It comes from the best plots of our property in San Bernardo, located in Maipo Alto. It is a classic Bordeaux blend based on Cabernet Sauvignon with an addition of other red varieties such as Cabernet Franc. As it opens up in the glass, it starts showing its great body and density. If offers a wonderful balance and a structure of very fine-grained tannins. Its ending is soft, elegant and of great persistence.
Sparkling
Brut Nature – 95 points Best Sparkling Wine
This handcrafted and traditional sparkling wine is made with respect for the times that the winemaking processes demand. It was crafted with patient affection in search of a perfect achievement. It shows on the palate the power of its structure, its great and slightly creamy body, safeguarded by a shield of fresh acidity. Its sharp bubbles lend its fine and persistent flavors an elegant balance. It is an ideal wine to toast to the nine consecutive years that is has been awarded as Chile’s best Sparkling Wine by the Descorchados Wine Guide.
Burt K.O. – 92 points Among the Best Sparkling Wines/Revelation Wine
We dress up in fine bubbles to show the solid structure of País, the variety that prides the Maule Valley; Chardonnay’s fruitiness and freshness, as well as the strong backbone and the flower scents of Pinot Noir. Made according to the traditional method (or champenoise), this light sparkling wine, of delicious acidity, offers a joyful and youthful character. It is fresh and well-balanced, ideal for toasting to any occasion.
Gran Reserva
Gran Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2019 – 94 points Among the Best Wines from Casablanca
The grapes for this wine were harvested by hand in our El Ensueño vineyard, located in the area of Lo Ovalle, the coldest within Casablanca. Its fermentation took place in foudres, where it was kept with its lees, thus adding an unequalled freshness. Its notes of grapefruit and honey make it a very gastronomic wine. It is persistent and elegant, and offers a great structure that bestows it with a good aging potential.
Gran Reserva, Carmenère 2019 – 93 points Among the Best Wines from Maipo Andes
This Carmenère comes from our vineyard located in San Bernardo, Maipo Valley. It was aged for 14 months in French oak foudres. It is a fruity, complex and persistent wine. It offers delicious black fruits, spices and chocolate, as well as earthy and truffle flavors. In addition to its velvety tannins, it shows a great body.
Adventures
VIGNO 2018 – 94 points Among the Best Carignan Wines
Our VIGNO is a blend of Carignan, Syrah and Chardonnay, made with grapes that come from old, head-pruned vines, planted in the Secano Costero (Coastal Dryland) of the Maule Valley. Delightful and very attractive, it offers a blend of juicy red fruits, floral notes and toasted touches that come from the wood it was aged in. It shows great persistence on the palate and a tannic structure that allows predicting a long life in the bottle.
Adventure, El Padre 2018 – 93 points Among the Best Cabernet Franc wines/Best wines from Maipo Andes
Cabernet Franc, which makes up the main component of this wine, is the father of Cabernet Sauvignon. It is an elegant wine that shows the full character of this variety whose distinguishing feature is that it unfolds intense red fruits and notes of dried herbs. Persistent and of fresh acidity, it offers a medium body that makes it attractive and very easy to drink.
Adventure, Bestiario 2020 – 93 points Among the Best Orange Wines
The aim of this wine was to explore the bold style of fermenting white varieties with its skins, as if they were reds. By using soft and delicate punch-downs, its result is fresh as well as complex. It was fermented with native yeasts in cement eggs, thus giving life to a juicy wine, of great character and persistence.
Edición Limitada
Edición Limitada, Criollo del Maipo 2018 – 94 points Among the best wines made with Carmenère
This wine comes from selected blocks of our San Bernardo property. The vineyard is located in the Maipo Valley, well-known for its temperate climate, with dry and warm summers, and for its stony and well-drained soils. Of violet red color, it offers aromas of black fruits, leather, cedar and tobacco. It is fresh and balanced, with an outstanding acidity. Its abundant tannins are well-structured, elegant and persistent.
Mancura
Guardián Reserva, Carignan 2018 – 91 points Among Best Value Red Wines
The grapes for this wine come from old vineyards located in the Maule Valley, specifically from an area nestled in the Coastal Mountain Range. The vineyards grow on rainfed soils that are very poor and eroded. Its topography is of soft rolling hills with south exposure. It offers a pleasant structure and body on the palate, with flavors of black chocolate, coffee, candied fruits with an additional big and persistent mouth ending.
Guardián Reserva, Chardonnay 2019 – 90 points Among Best Value White Wines
The grapes for this Chardonnay come from the Leyda Valley. The vineyard is greatly influenced by the Pacific Ocean, which is only 20 km away. It offers aromas of ripe citric fruits, such as lemons and mandarins, combined with mineral notes and a very seductive touch of vanilla, honey and almonds. It is fresh, with good acidity and a remarkable persistence.
Vistamar
Vistamar, Corte de Campo 2019, 91 points
The grapes for this wine come from our property called Belén, located in the Casablanca Valley. It is one of the closest areas to the coast, greatly influenced by the cold Pacific Ocean. It is planted at high density, in pursuit of an outstanding quality and fruit expression. Chardonnay was kept for 8 months in French oak barrels. The wine is fresh, elegant, and inviting, with a very pleasant acidity.
Vistamar, Single Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2020, 90 points
The grapes for this wine come from Lo Ovalle, one of the coldest sectors of the Casablanca Valley. The maritime influence helps to produce grapes of high aromatic expression and great freshness. Very juicy, fresh, and fruity on the palate, it offers a pleasant and long ending.
For further information, please contact Osciel Velásquez, ovelasquez@morande.cl