Casa Silva Carmenère is built in a user-friendly style with lots of up-front fruit on the nose and palate. Aromas of plum, sweet dark fruit, spice and chocolate are evident on the nose. Plush chocolate and ripe fruit flavours are complemented by spice and juicy acidity. There is quite a bit going on in this well-made red. Vintages tagged the wine as a ‘Complex crowd-pleaser’ in their March 3rd release and we have to agree with them.

Have some fun with this wine and experiment with all sorts of different flavours of food. Use this Carmenère when you might otherwise shy away from wine and drink beer. Tex-mex flavours would match as would barbecue pork ribs, Peking duck, souvlaki or grilled salmon teriyaki. It also plays well with Mediterranean dishes.

This wine is fake boobs and no brains for me. Ripe dark fruit and chocolaty texture, but all masked by acidification, wood and tannin addition. Seems like its been handled by the Hollywood plastic surgeon of winemaking. I can see this as a crowd pleaser, but just like fake boobs I'll enjoy it for the night, but won't be calling back tomorrow. Tasted Mar '12