2018 Manso de Velasco Viñas Viejas Cabernet Sauvignon
Producer: Miguel Torres
Region: Curicó Valley, Andes
Country: Chile
Grapes: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2018
ABV: 14.5%
Vivino: 4.2
Drink By: 2030
Occasional Wine Note: What a delicious Chilean wine. It's softer and more elegant than you might expect from a 100% Cabernet offering, but that does not means it's lesser. We love the ripe red and blue fruits, the spice, the earthy notes, the hints of licorice and tobacco, and balanced acidity and tannin. Just a beautiful wine.
Descorchados
Critic Score: 96
Located between Lontué and Molina, the Manso de Velasco Vineyard is about 120 years old, probably the oldest cabernet sauvignon in Chile, or at the very least, among the oldest in the country. The wine was first released in 1985 and has maintained a succulent and very ripe style ever since. This year seems to be the vintage of change, of a different path. With this vintage, winemaker Eduardo Jordán has begun to give it a bit more freshness and lightness, decreasing the number of new barrels from 40% to 11%, shifting just under half of the 18-month aging time to foudres and choosing lots that were more vertical, with more pronounced acidity, and lighter. And that comes through in the final result, in a Manso that’s more drinkable without losing the style of sweet spices and ripe red fruits it has always had. Manso fans are will not feel betrayed.
Revista Adega
Critic Score: 95
In one of the best vintages in Chile in recent years, this beautiful Cabernet Sauvignon is a best buy among Chilean icons. Fresh cherry and blueberry fruits. Very medicinal, white pepper, anise. A delicious and noble earthy touch. Very balanced. Fine tannins accompanied by beautiful acidity. Finish with hints of tobacco. This vintage was aged for 18 months, with 11% in new barrels, 49% in second-use barrels and 40% in foudres. (translated)