I recently tasted the Chilcas Cabernet, which scored well on my quality/price criteria.  Moving on to the Carmenere varietal I was hoping for similar performance, but alas I was let down.

The varietal is one of the original six Noble Bordeaux grapes and is related to the Cabernet family.  I have never had a French Carmenere, only Spanish and more predominantly- Chile.  I find it to be very spicy, with strong hints of green pepper (capsicum) and lacking hefty tannins.  This particular bottling hit me with a very ‘tinny’ taste profile which was almost medicinal on the initial attack.  The spice and red currants hit on the mid-palate, but are somewhat overshadowed by the metallic taste.  I really did not enjoy the profile, but it did mellow out after about an hour.  This is a major wave-off, spend your cash on their other wines.  82 points and 1 star.