Maipo & Casablanca Valley, Chile - Swirl Wine Club

The Carmenere grape is considered by many as Chile’s happy mistake. The grape was widely planted in Bordeaux before phylloxera (microscopic pests that destroy grapevines). It was supposed to produce excellent wine, but it ripened late and was susceptible to coulure, a natural condition that can produce extremely low yields. After phylloxera, it was not replanted and interestingly enough, hardly any Carmenere can be found today in Bordeaux. That might have been the last word on Carmenere, had some French scientists visiting Chile in the early 1990s not been troubled by the appearance and character of Chilean merlot. Further studies revealed that in fact much of the Merlot planted in Chile was actually Carmenere! For whatever reason, the Chilean wine industry was phylloxera-free in the late 19th century, and to this day phylloxera has not been found there. And with that, Carmenere has become Chile’s signature grape! The deepest, darkest, purplest of all red grapes needs a long growing season to reach its fullest potential.