Sena - Valle de Aconcagua 2015 (750ml)
Sena 2015 shines by its perfect balance and seamless structure, marked by its many layers of pure fruit and silky tannins. The wine displays wonderful complexity, along with unique tension, energy and elegance. This is a definite recognition that Chile belongs to the major leagues of wine, and is a righteous reward to the team's hard work and dedication.
Sena Description
In 1995 Robert Mondavi and Eduardo Chadwick pioneered an international joint venture with a very challenging goal: to reach the full potential of Chile’s wine country and to create a world-class Icon-level wine like none other in Chile. Sharing their dream, efforts and dedication, in 1997 they released the first vintage of Seña (1995), Chile’s first icon wine. This marked a milestone and initiated the path for making ultra-premium wines in Chile.
Seña needed a vineyard of its own, and Tim Mondavi and Eduardo Chadwick began searching for just the right terroir. Tim was ahead of his time in insisting they seek out a cooler site in order to make a fresher, more elegant wine than was the norm in the mid-1990s. And because they agreed that the use of sustainable practices was a key element from the beginning (which has since been converted to biodynamics), they also looked for a site that was relatively self-contained for better environmental protection and to prevent cross-contamination from neighbours involved in conventional agricultural practices. Seña’s 42-hectare hillside vineyard was planted in 1998 to Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, along with Malbec, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
James Suckling: 100 Points
Stunning aromas of blackcurrant, stone, blueberry and licorice. Also iodine. Floral. Perfumed. Full body, fantastic density of fruit and ripe tannins. It goes on for minutes on the palate with such energy and focus. Touch of chewiness on the finish. A complex and complete wine that delivers a generosity with firmness.
Wine Advocate: 96 Points
As a comparison to the 2014 vintage of this wine, the 2015 Seña resulted in 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Carmenere, 12% Malbec, 7% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc, with now 12% of the wine matured in new Stockinger oak foudres and the rest in barrique for some 22 months. 2015 might have been a slightly warmer year, but the resulting wine is lower in alcohol and higher in acidity, which provide for a more vibrant mouthfeel and a more focused expression of the character of the place. This vintage has half a degree less alcohol, and the acidity is a little more pungent; and, the amount of wine in foudre seems to help the oak to show better integrated. This is dry, nicely textured, and the replacement of the Merlot by Malbec seems to have also added to the refinement of the tannins that are super-elegant. 66,000 bottles were filled in February 2017.
Wine Spectator: 92 Points
A suave and focused red, with crisp cherry and currant flavors backed by crunchy acidity. Hints of sandalwood and cardamom linger on the taut finish. Petit Verdot, Merlot, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon.
