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When I first tried Carmenere I was so excited about it. It can be beautifully, fragrantly raspberry-scented, but also have a soft, dusty character to it, but also reminding me of Merlot. This excited me and I was always on the lookout for a new one. I last tried Casillero del Diablo Carmenere in March 2006. Initially it smelt deeply herbal. On further sniffs we came up with liquorice, green leaves, green peppers and then it smelt intensely of plain chocolate. It was very smooth and gentle in the mouth, without being spineless. We found mint, chocolate and great balance.
I also tried Chileno Gold Carmenere that month. Lovely dusty raspberry smell - absolutely typical and very attractive. It was clearly a Carmenere month, because I also loved the Co-op’s Fairtrade Carmenere. Typical dusty, raspberry scented Carmenere smell with some mint to add interest. Quite hard tannin, but attractive perfumed fruit won out. I tried it again in October that year and loved it.
Then in March this year I retried the wine and suddenly it was burning hot with alcohol. After that I had a few experiences of Carmenere that were so over extracted and hot, with 14% and 14.5% alcohol that I went right off the grape.
So, when we sat down to try four Carmenere samples this week I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Morrisons The Best Chilean Carmenere Reserva 2004, which is £6.49 was, as it says on the label, The Best. In fact, it was the only one I would re-buy. It was nicely fragrant with some oak. It reminded Johnny of the leather interior of a new car, of which the rest of us had no first hand knowledge, but could imagine. It tasted rather like claret with its stalkiness and, thank goodness, the alcohol was in balance at 13.5%. There was some mint on the nose and palate and it really was a very enjoyable wine.
Sainsbury’s Reserve Selection Chilean Carmenere 2006 is quite cheap at £4.49 but it smelt burnt and the taste was simple and incendiary. I don’t want my wine to feel as if it has had a slug of gin thrown in.
Mont Gras Reserva Carmenere 2005, which is £6.99 from Waitrose wasn’t a surprise, because I’ve tried it a few times recently and it has got hotter and hotter each time I’ve tried it. It really has now become a most unpleasant drink. It smells quite appealingly dark and syrupy. Alex found it earthy. It stained our glasses. It tasted of raw, unripe grapes and was nastily hot.
I was discussing Fairtrade wines with a friend yesterday and we were both disappointed to report that we have had very few examples of good Fairtrade wines. We sited the Co-op as the one place that they seemed to have got it right. However, their 2006 Carmenere, at £4.99 is, politely, rubbish. It smells of alcohol and tastes absolutely ridiculous.