Viña Alicia Cuarzo Petit Verdot 2007

The 2007 Cuarzo, a blend of 95% Petit Verdot with the balance equal parts Grenache Noir and Carignan, spent 16 months in a mix of new and used French oak. A glass-coating opaque purple color, it offers up a brooding bouquet of pencil lead, espresso, mineral, earth notes, underbrush, and blackberry. This is a dense effort that manages to be relatively light on its feet. There is plenty of structure under the layers of fruit and a minimum of 5-7 years of cellaring is advised. It will be fascinating to retry this beast in another 8-10 years. Drink: 2015-2025. Score - 93. (Jay Miller, erobertparker.com, Dec. 2010)