2015 La Cumbre Syrah

The 2015 La Cumbre is produced as a mix of Syrah grapes from the cooler Max 5 vineyard in Aconcagua, with less from Max 1, and from vines in the cooler Aconcagua Costa. The hand-picked grapes were destemmed, crushed and fermented in stainless steel vats at temperatures ranging from 26 to 28 degrees Celsius. The wine aged for some 22 months in French barriques, half of them new. Despite the warmer year, the 2015s are the freshest wines I remember from Errázuriz. They were able to harvest earlier, and all the wines feel very fresh; in the Syrah, they have low yields and stopped pushing for more ripeness and keeping the vines with enough water so they don't get stressed. This is a spicier expression with some varietal aromas, violets, raspberry leaves and sour cherries. The palate is completely dry and lively, with very fine tannins and a supple finish. This is a more complete and deeper wine than the Aconcagua Costa Syrah, but I still like the style of the Coastal better... 10,667 bottles were filled in February 2017.