Concha Y Toro, Puemo (Chile) Carmenere 2015

Carmenere can fall into the "acquired taste" category for us North Americans — it typically starts out green and dirty on a pop and pour, sadly leading to a fair amount of premature pouring out.  With a short amount of airtime, many examples can blossom into pretty interesting stuff.  This offering gives the expected, "Hello, my name is Carmenere and I’m from Chile" but it calms quickly into an earthy, peppery glass of black and blue fruits with a touch of oak char adding interest.  It will make a nice foil for gamier meats or bold cheeses.  Just to give you an idea, I raised my score two points over the ten minutes I spent with the wine.  Contains 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.