2011 Red

56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Carmenère, 13% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot. TA 5.79 g/l, pH 3.45, RS 2.45 g/l. Fruit from their Seña hillside vineyard, 41 km from the Pacific Ocean. Cool temperatures throughout the growing season, harvest delayed by up to two weeks. Hand-picked and sorted by hand. Stainless-steel fermentation, three pumpovers per day. Total maceration time ranged from 14–32 days. Aged for 22 months in French oak barrels (77% new). Quite tight and young on the nose but going in the right direction with good tension. Deep crimson. Very well integrated with only a lifting hint of Carmenère’s greenness. Good freshness and ripeness. A bit sweeter than a typical bordeaux but not uncomfortably sweet. Fine tannins. (JR)

Extremely clear and complex with dark berry, spearmint and flowers. Full body, ultra-fine tannins and a long, long finish. The tannin quality in this is exceptional. Tight and beautiful. Drink or hold. Made from biodynamically grown grapes. 58% cabernet sauvignon, 15% carmenere, 15% merlot, 7% petit verdot and 5% cabernet franc. 22 months in 75% new French oak.

The 2011 Sena is a blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Carmenere, 15% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc aged in 75% new French oak barrels for 22 months. It has a bright cherry color and restrained aromas of blackberries, spices, cedar wood, tobacco and a hint of mint. The palate is a little tight and restrained, and the wine medium-bodied, with balanced concentration and good acidity. Young but accessible, it shows great elegance and balance. I like it more than the older vintages that I had the chance to taste for context. It needs to develop the bouquet and complexity that, without a doubt, will come with time in bottle.