Baronesa P. 2019 - Escudo Rojo

BARONESS PHILIPPINE DE ROTHSCHILD

« Even more than a tribute, this wine is a heritage, born of the encounter of Chilean terroirs, our family company’s know-how and a charismatic personality. If I had to describe Baronesa P. in three terms, they would be exacting standards, elegance and flamboyance.

Exacting standards have been at the heart of our family for generations. The same exacting standards apply to the making of Baronesa P. Elegance is embodied in both the bottle and the wine. Flamboyance is the reflection of her remarkable personality. »

Philippe Sereys de Rothschild,
Chairman and CEO Baron Philippe de Rothschild S.A.

Baronesa P. is a selection of our finest micro-terroirs, selected over a period of several years based on our experience and understanding of these soils and vineyards, as well as the use of sensors to measure the electrical conductivity of the soil. Over many years and after producing countless batches, we refined our selection to create this cuvée in honor of Baroness Philippine de Rothschild.

2019

2018

« Even more than a tribute, this wine is a heritage, born of the encounter of Chilean terroirs, our family company’s know-how and a charismatic personality. If I had to describe Baronesa P. in three terms, they would be exacting standards, elegance and flamboyance.

Exacting standards have been at the heart of our family for generations. The same exacting standards apply to the making of Baronesa P. Elegance is embodied in both the bottle and the wine. Flamboyance is the reflection of her remarkable personality. »

Philippe Sereys de Rothschild,
Chairman and CEO Baron Philippe de Rothschild S.A.

Harvest

From March 27 to May 13

Grape variety

78% Cabernet Sauvignon

6% Petit Verdot

6% Carmenere

5% Syrah

5% Cabernet Franc

Ageing

15 months in French oak, 60% new and 40% previously used for one vintage.

Ageing potential

10 to 15 years

Tasting notes

The color is deep, intense ruby-red with purple highlights.

The nose, intense and powerful, revealing black fruit aromas dominated by blackberries, blueberries, and black olives, mingling with fresh spices and delicate balsamic, graphite and roast hazelnut nuances due to barrel ageing.

Palate starts out powerful and complex, becoming wonderfully concentrated and full-bodied, underpinned by a tight-knit, fine tannic structure. Very well-balanced mid-palate with natural freshness, revealing a complex array of flavours elegantly combining notes of blackcurrant, blackberry and Ente plum with spices and pepper, enhanced by a touch of ristretto. The finish is concentrated and well-balanced, with long-lasting black fruit aromas, followed by retro nasal notes of liquorice, cedar, and toasted almonds.

The powerful, refined finish goes on and on, suggesting excellent ageing potential.

WINE TASTING WITH EMMANUEL RIFFAUD,

Chief Winemarker, Baron Philippe de Rothschild Chile

Carmenere and Petit Verdot also grow in a Mediterranean climate, but here the average temperature is 1ºC higher than in the Cabernet and Syrah vineyards, which allows each variety to reach optimal ripeness.

Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah grow in well-balanced alluvial soils rich in pebbles, with a silty-sandy-clay to silty-clay texture, and bedrock at a depth of 3.0 meters below the surface. The vineyards were planted in 1997, 2003, and 2009. The Carmenere and Petit Verdot vineyards were planted in 1998 in deep clay soils, which favor a smooth, elegant tannic structure.

CLIMATOGRAPHY, HARVEST CONDITIONS

The 2019 vintage benefited from particularly hot and dry weather conditions, with the mean temperature above the ten-year average (+0.3°C). Meanwhile, rainfall was much lower than usual (36 to 42% less than the previous year) and concentrated exclusively over the winter period. These were optimum conditions for the growth cycle. The cold winter months provided a good dormancy period for the vines. Then, nature gradually awoke with the onset of spring, triggering steady bud break. The hot, dry spell that followed – a prominent feature of this vintage – was conducive to quick and even flowering.

Summer began generally warmer than average (+0.5°C), resulting in fairly slow yet harmonious veraison. Late summer/early autumn was slightly cooler compared to previous years (-0.5°C), propitious to slow ripening. Then, April confirmed the trend for a hot vintage. The acceleration in ripening meant that the grapes had to be picked in haste. The lack of rainfall during this period determined the typical characteristics of this vintage and we were able to harvest each grape variety at peak ripeness.

Picking began on 27 March with the Syrah grapes, followed by Cabernet Sauvignon from 15 to 24 April, once perfect balance between aromatic and phenolic ripeness had been achieved. Fortunately, due to the dry weather, the harvest extended until late April, with the last pass of Carmenère on 29 April, finishing with Petit Verdot on 13 May.

The resulting vintage is deep and intense, yet fine and elegant. It boasts a distinctive Chilean identity, particularly regarding the expression of the fruit, which, combined with a rich and concentrated mid-palate, contributes complexity and freshness while fully showcasing the terroir.

2019 boasts outstanding ageing potential and is on par with the greatest Chilean vintages.

« Even more than a tribute, this wine is a heritage, born of the encounter of Chilean terroirs, our family company’s know-how and a charismatic personality. If I had to describe Baronesa P. in three terms, they would be exacting standards, elegance and flamboyance.

Exacting standards have been at the heart of our family for generations. The same exacting standards apply to the making of Baronesa P. Elegance is embodied in both the bottle and the wine. Flamboyance is the reflection of her remarkable personality. »

Philippe Sereys de Rothschild,
Chairman and CEO Baron Philippe de Rothschild S.A.

Harvest

from April 5 to May 15

Grape variety

76% Cabernet Sauvignon

9% Carmenere

5,5% Petit Verdot

5% Cabernet Franc

4,5% Syrah

Ageing

14 months in French oak, 65% new and 35% 1-year-old barrels

Ageing potential

10 to 15 years

TASTING NOTES

The color is intense, deep ruby-red with violet highlights. The nose, intense and potent on the nose, revealing black fruit aromas with predominant notes of blackberry, blackcurrant, and black cherry. Spices such as black pepper gradually come to the fore, mingled with subtle aromas of cedarwood, vanilla, caramel, and toasted hazelnuts imparted by oak ageing.

Palate starts out potent and complex on the palate with good concentration and volume, accompanied by elegantly structured and wonderfully ripe tannins. Nicely balanced mid-palate with a natural freshness that brings out a complex aromatic expression where wild blueberry and blackberry notes elegantly intertwine with Asian spices like Sichuan pepper and a hint of toffee. Long, well-balanced and concentrated on the finish, with lingering aromas of black fruit, marking a return to peppery notes and toasted almond notes. The exceptionally persistent finish combines power and elegance, accounting for this wine’s excellent ageing potential.

WINE TASTING WITH EMMANUEL RIFFAUD,

Chief Winemarker, Baron Philippe de Rothschild Chile

Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah grow in a Mediterranean climate greatly influenced by the cold air that comes down from the Andes Mountains at night, cooling the valley all year round, but especially during the summer months. This means diurnal and nocturnal temperatures vary significantly, a highly favorable characteristic for the maturation of Cabernet and Syrah. Carmenere and Petit Verdot also grow in a Mediterranean climate, but here the average temperature is 1ºC higher than in the Cabernet and Syrah vineyards, which allows each variety to reach optimal ripeness.

Vignes Baronesa P. vin Chili Escudo Rojo

CLIMATOGRAPHY, HARVEST CONDITIONS

Weather conditions for the 2018 vintage were quite exceptional throughout the entire vine cycle. Although the amount of rainfall was 25-30% lower than the average for the last eight vintages, 75% fell during the winter, generating substantial water reserves which ensured optimum conditions for vegetation growth. This was followed by a perfect combination of hot, dry weather and cooler spells at important stages in the cycle, bringing the grapes to optimum aromatic and phenolic maturity so that picking could start at the best possible time.
The harvest started with the Cabernet Franc on 5 April, followed by the Syrah four days later. We were then able to wait for the Cabernet Sauvignon to reach a perfect combination of aromatic and phenolic maturity, picking the grapes from 19 to 26 April. The harvest extended into May as the balanced weather conditions continued: we picked the last Carmenere between 2 and 5 May and the Petit Verdot on 14 and 15 May.

Although rainfall was lower than normal and temperatures were higher than average, they were nevertheless ideally distributed over the vegetation cycle, giving them a decisive influence on the exceptional balance achieved in the 2018 vintage.

As a result, the wines express generosity and power while remaining elegant and refined. They have a very marked Chilean identity, especially in their expression of the fruit which, combined with concentration on the mid-palate, gives them complexity and richness and reveals the distinctive character of their terroirs. Having produced wines with excellent ageing potential, 2018 takes its place among the great Chilean vintages.