2023 Lapostolle Carmenere Cuvee Alexandre Apalta Vineyard Apalta Chile 750 ml

Lapostolle is Chile’s most important red wine producer, a legendary estate whose $170 (often 100-point) Clos Apalta bottling sets the bar for the region—and beyond. James Suckling plainly called it “one of the world’s greatest red wines.” 

But Lapostolle is special not only for what they can do on the high end, but also the outrageous quality and character they pack into bottles like their 2023 Cuvée Alexandre Carménère.

Grown on a biodynamically farmed vineyard first planted in 1920, made under the guidance of 100-point winemaking icon Michel Rolland, this bottle shows off Chile’s trademark Carménère, blended with small amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. It’s concentrated and bold, plush and concentrated, with ripe dark fruit and spice layered over supple tannins. Herbal and savory notes carry through to the long, polished finish. 

We met Charles-Henri de Bournet Marnier Lapostolle, the owner of Clos Apalta, a few years ago at a James Suckling South America event. As is often the case, the vintner resembles the wine: a polished and aristocratic exterior (we wish we could afford his tailor) concealing a burning intensity and intelligence. 

His parents founded the original estate in 1994, acquiring 74 acres of vines high in the Colchagua Valley’s Apalta Valley—some of the most coveted terroir in South America. This 2023 Cuvée Alexandre emerges from the estate's prized Condor de Apalta vineyard, where dramatic slopes and poor, granitic soils naturally restrict yields and intensify flavors. 

Under the guidance of technical director Jacques Begarie, Lapostolle maintains a steadfast commitment to sustainable viticulture. The winery achieved organic certification in 2011, followed by biodynamic practices that honor the estate's unique microclimate and biodiversity. These methods not only enhance the expression of terroir but represent the family's multi-generational vision for environmental stewardship.

The meticulous approach continues in their gravity-flow winery, designed by renowned Chilean architect Ignacio Covarrubias to blend seamlessly into Apalta's hillsides. Here, the team practices minimal intervention to preserve the purest expression of Apalta's terroir.