Red Mountain’s Most Intriguing Grape
Explore All Things Carménère
This page is our place to celebrate the grape, the farming, the wines, and the growing fascination around Carménère at Cooper. Whether you are already a believer or just beginning to discover it, welcome.
100% Estate-Farmed
Block 5 planted 1997
Block 14 Planted 2014
Block 7 planted 2015
Block 21 planted 2018
RMS block planted 2019
Carménère is both heritage and conviction. Once nearly forgotten, this noble Bordeaux variety has found its voice on Red Mountain, where heat, wind, and sparse soils demand restraint and reward resolve. We farm Carménère deliberately, at minimal yields, allowing time and place to shape its depth and structure. For Cooper, Carménère is a statement of belief: that greatness is farmed, not chased—and that the most compelling wines are those willing to stand apart.
At Cooper, Carménère is more than a varietal. It is a conversation starter, a signature, and one of the most compelling expressions of what Red Mountain can do.
Originally planted in Bordeaux and later rediscovered in South America, Carménère has always carried a certain mystery. It is a grape with depth, character, and an unmistakable personality. On Red Mountain, that personality takes on even greater intensity. Warm days, cool nights, and our naturally powerful soils give Carménère the structure, ripeness, and savory edge that make it impossible to ignore.
For us, Carménère is not a side note. It is part of our identity.
The Grape That Found Its Home on Red Mountain
Why Carménère Matters Here
Red Mountain is built for bold red wines. The small berries, thick skins, concentrated flavors, and natural intensity of this site allow Carménère to show itself in a way that is both polished and wild. It brings dark fruit, black pepper, roasted herbs, earth, and that unmistakable green-savory edge when handled correctly. At its best, Carménère is layered, exotic, textured, and completely memorable.
That is exactly why we are drawn to it.
We believe Carménère deserves more attention, more conversation, and a bigger place at the table. It is a grape for people who love Cabernet Sauvignon, but want something more intriguing. It is for those who appreciate Merlot, but want more spice, more edge, and more story in the glass.
Our Approach to Carménère…Everything starts in the vineyard.
As an estate-farmed winery, we know exactly where our Carménère comes from, how it is grown, and what each season brings to the fruit.
Farming matters. Crop load matters. Sunlight matters. Picking date matters.
Carménère demands attention, and when you give it that attention, it rewards you.
In the cellar, our goal is not to overwork it. We want to let the vineyard speak while shaping a wine that is balanced, structured, and deeply expressive. Some vintages show more floral lift. Some lean darker and more brooding. Some carry more spice, smoke, and savory character. That is part of what makes Carménère so exciting. It is never generic.
What Carménère Tastes Like
Carménère lives in a space all its own.
Expect notes of black cherry, plum, cassis, blackberries, roasted jalapeño, cracked peppercorn, dried herbs, graphite, cocoa, and warm earth. On Red Mountain, it can carry beautiful richness through the mid-palate while still finishing with structure and energy. There is often a softness to the fruit, followed by a savory tension that keeps you coming back for another sip.
It is both generous and serious. Familiar and uncommon.
Why We Keep Coming Back to It
Some grapes are easy to explain.
Carménère is better to experience.
It has the power to surprise people.
It starts conversations in the tasting room.
It gives depth to blends and distinction to varietal bottlings.
It reminds us that great wine does not have to be predictable to be world-class.
For those who know Cooper, Carménère has become part of the story.
For those just discovering us, it is often one of the wines they remember most.
Explore All Things Carménère at Cooper
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Explore All Things Carménère at Cooper -
Estate CarmÉnÈre
Why we are known as the “Kings of Carménère, there is no other that can compare.
Estate C4
Made by Cooper with equal parts of:
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Franc and
Carménère
Estate RosÉ of CarmÉnÈre
Using the saignée method ("to bleed" in French) and then barrel aged, this Rosé is a lush, vibrant, and unmistakably bold, creation... it is a red-wine drinker’s Rosé.
ESTATE L’inizio
The mega-blend of Bordeaux varietals. Six independent estate grapes, grown block by block, coming together to create something layered, elegant, and distinctly Red Mountain.