Viñedos Calcu Fotem – 2019

Colchagua Valley (Marchigüe)
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Carménère
94 Points (Descorchados), 93 Points (James Suckling)

Calcu began life in 2003 as the special project of the Hurtado family, who have over a century’s worth of experience making quality wines in the Colchagua Valley. They found a unique place in Marchigüe marked by hills of granite stone with clay seams, close proximity to the sea (just 16 miles from the Pacific Ocean), and varying altitudes and orientation of the slopes; all this makes for a perfect area to create hyper-specific wines that reflect the personality of each individual plot.

Fotem, a 20-year experiment in coastal cabernet sauvignon (they spent the first four years just getting the 166 micro-plots planted by hand), is arguably their most beguiling wine. It’s elegant, without being fusty. On the palate you find blackberries, just ripe enough to still retain a bit of resistance when you bite into them, and red plum. The structure is near perfect, with a long finish.