CASA SILVA | Edición Limitada | Petit Verdot | 2017
petit verdot

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Today we are going to review a single-varietal petit verdot wine from Chile‘s famous Colchagua Valley – Edición Limitada Petit Verdot 2017 by Viña Casa Silva. Petit Verdot is an old french variety that originates in the famous Bordeaux region, a variety which is rarely produced as a single-varietal wine and mostly used in blending (usually added in less than 10% of the volume) due to its deep color, tannin extract and nuanced earthy-floral profile. However, a dedicated wine enthusiast might find here and there some rare examples of a single-varietal petit verdot wine, mostly from warm sub-regions within Australia, Chile, Spain and USA, as lately winemakers have realized that in the best years (petit verdot is a late-ripening variety and usually it struggles to ripen fully) it can make intensely fruity, floral and gravely-earthy wines with nuanced tannins and high natural acidity. This particular wine is made from the grapes that were sourced from the winemaker’s best sites in Los Lingues and Lolol vineyards and has been aged between 8 and 12 months in oak barriques (1st and 2nd use), with another 5 months spent in the bottle before being released on the market. That said and without further ado, let’s take a look at the wine tasting results.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
colour: deep ruby color
clarity: hazy ruby shades

//Olfactory
intensity: powerful & earthy
fruit profile: red fruits
__red fruits: red currant | cranberry
fruit character: ripe & underripe

//Flavor
non fruit: vegetal | spice | oak | savory | earthy 
__vegetal: wormwood
__spice: red pepper | cloves
__oak: tobacco
__savory: iron | veal | brown olive | game | musk
__earthy: soil dust | turf | compost | granite | clay | loam | forest floor
primary layer: savory & earthy

//Palate
sweetness: dry
acidity: medium+
alcohol: high
tannin: medium-
__grip: green
balance: fair
__dominant: alcohol
body: supple & austere | medium-

//Taste
fruit profile: red fruits
fruit character: underripe
non fruit: savory & earthy
finish: medium
aftertaste: bitter-rough

//Scoring
CASA SILVA | Edición Limitada | Petit Verdot | 2017
variety: petit verdot
country: Chile
region: Colchagua Valley
rating: 91.2

//Conclusion
maturity: developing | drink now or in the next 2-3 years
verdict: fine | highly recommended
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This is definitely a fine wine of Chile and, with a total of 91.2 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Verdict: this is a quite delicate wine indeed: earthy-savory and bitter-rough – a wine that is still developing in the bottle, as in its current state it tastes austere, hot and angular. That said, our recommendation is to drink it sooner rather than later, as it does not hold any big promises of bottle ageing – it is a wine meant to be enjoyed within the next 2 or 3 years. On the palate the wine delivers elevated acidity, fine-grained and slightly bitter tannins and an overwhelming touch of alcoholic warmth on the mouthfeel. On the nose it brings underripe red fruits and a pronounced savoriness in the foreground, supported by an earthy- spicy background. All in all, this is a wine that lacks harmony and finesse on the palate, as in its current state it tastes rough, sharp and angular, which leads to a quite bitter and green aftertaste. This one might not be the best petit verdot wine on the market, but it will definitely pair well with some extra-rare meats, as all that savoriness in the wine will be nicely complemented by the natural umami flavours of the meat.

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