Casa La Joya Carmenere 2005 Chile

We have a surprise first wine to review and for Elaine and I it was an unknown and we were pleasantly surprised. As we were deciding which red wine to drink tonight Elaine choose the Carmenere from Casa La Joya 2005 Vintage. On the nose it had hints of Violets and some red and black fruit. On the Palette the violets came through along with coco. Some spice was found on the nose and the palate with a medium finish. I did some research on the varietal and found in northern Italy significant vineyards that were previously identified as Cabernet Franc were actually Carmenere. Chile is most known for the varietal and when fully ripened this varietal can produce the best qualities of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Cheers !!