Santa Ema Catalina 2021

Cellar for up to 13 years. No need to decant before serving. Regularly named one of Chile’s finest wineries in terms of value for money and quality, Santa Ema was founded by the Pavone family who have over three generations of experience of making wine in the local area. The family can trace their history in the Maipo Valley back to 1917 when they first arrived here to grow grapes. Today they use their intimate knowledge of the land and terroir to produce excellent wines from classic international varieties. Catalina is one of their flagship bottlings and was inspired by Catalina Moreno-Rodillo, the wife of Santa Ema’s founder, Félix Pavone. It’s an elegant Bordeaux-style blend composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere and Cabernet Franc. The grapes are sourced from prime estate vineyards in the Cachapoal Valley where conditions are ideal for crafting top quality reds thanks to the sunny summer days and cooling breezes from the nearby Andes Mountains. Once in the winery the grapes are vinified separately by variety and aged in new French oak barrels for 10 months followed by a further 4 months after the blending process is complete. The wine is then allowed to rest in the bottle for a year before it is ready for release. The result is a richly-layered, full bodied wine with powerful dark fruit flavours and a muscular structure and tannins which will respond well to additional cellaring.

Price: £31.85 from 8wines UK