Almaviva Puente Alto Red Blend

Yum! I was worried because the cork was soft, so I used the Durand. A bit of VA but it blew off. Great fruit for a 9 yr old wine, vanilla notes from French oak and delicious juicy berry flavor, spice and dried herbs. Silky, lingering finish. It’s a winner! Carmenere based.

All you want is in here

Tar on the nose. Great dark berries and lift.

I would've thought the 2009 would be ready. Or, the wine simply isn't balanced. Certain components are there, but it's showing to be tightly wound and highly acidic at this point.

technically perfect work, but unfortunately without rough edges and character. bit still fun drinking!

Amazing, silky smooth tannins and with a full mouthfeel.

*chef's kiss*

For me just shy of an immaculate wine.
Immediately upon opening got a super prominent whiff of stewed vegetal / green peppers aroma. Blew off a bit over time. Flinty and graphite mineral and relatively muted fruit aromas.

Beautiful cherry/cassis/blackberry fruit. Medium body. Relaxed tannins. Lower acidity than I expected. But the finish. Elevated and never ending. One of those wines you never feel compelled to take the next sip, in a good way...you never lose the taste of your last drink.

Second almaviva we've had. Loved them both, very different from the '98.

Plums, black cherries, and black pepper take center stage. They are buffetted by beef blood, leather, tobacco, and graphite. The bouquet isn't as strong as other vintages, nor are the tanins

After last weekends 2014 success I discovered the 2009 lurking in a local liquor store. Firstly there was a cork emergency as it broke while trying to remove. I have read other reviews mentioning this for the 2009 so beware. No drama, the wine is fine but it might make me think twice about buying any more to lay down. First thirty minutes out of the bottle is no go, disjointed and harsh flavours. After an hour in the decanter the wine comes to life, visually some browning around the edges and great aromas of dark fruit, tobacco, earth and oak. Nose develops lavender, green pepper and chocolate as time goes on. Palate is rounded, with a complex blend of all of the above plus lead pencil (I never understood that one until today), tar and cherry. Great, fragrant finish. Real quality, two vintages on two Saturdays ‘14 slightly better than the ‘09 in my opinion but both really good. I see that the ‘15 is available now; next weekend?

Not their best vintage, but well balanced and a solid effort. I should have had some steak tonight... A pleasant amount of tannin, and a healthy (?) load of tobacco on the nose.