Last week Lemuria restaurant played host to a much anticipated vertical tasting of Almaviva from 1999 to 2004. This was followed by a dinner which was originally supposed to feature wines of both Concha y Toro and Philippe de Rothschild (the two partners in Almaviva) but it was later changed to Chateau d'Armaillhac of Rothschild France and a Chardonnay of Rothschild Chile as Concha y Toro is no longer distrubuted here.
Almaviva 1999 - Slightly hot. Very ripe fruit. Good nose. Good acidity. Smooth. Ready to drink. Bordeaux-ish.
Almaviva 2000 - Strong espresso nose. Tarry. Earth. Tea. Dark fruit. Some wood. Prune. A little unbalanced. Not showing too well. Doesn't seem like it will get better.
Almaviva 2001 - Spicy. Baking spices. Mint. Quite sweet. Dried fruit. Tannic. Excellent now but with a lot of upside potential. Good blend of Old and New World styles. My favorite.
Alamviva 2002 - Closed on nose. Rich. Very tannic. Good fruit. Oaky finish. Hard to evaluate. Needs time.
Almaviva 2003 - Closed on the nose. Sweet. Woody. Toffee, caramel. New Worldy style.
Almaviva 2004 - Cedary. Bordeaux-like nose. Slightly cheesy which I didn't like. Oaky finish. Needs time.
The 1999, 2000 and 2001 are very different wines but have an Old World vibe about them. The other three, on the other hand are quite similar in flavor and are definitely New World in flavor. Most preferred the 1999 or 2001. Although there is oak evident in these wines, for the most part, it's well-integrated.
Dinner wines:
Baron Philippe de Rothschild Maipo Chardonnay Reserva 2002 - Lightly oaked and citrussy. Not bad.
Chateau d'Armaillhac 2004 - Closed. Very dry. Unfortunately, as cigars made an appearance before I could make a note. I remember, though, nearly everyone thought it was a shame it followed the Almavivas as it suffered in comparison.