This is Viña Errázuriz’s flagship wine, named in honour of Don Maximiano Errázuriz, who created the winery in 1870 in the heart of the Aconcagua Valley. Don Maximiano Founder’s Reserve represents Errazuriz’ heritage, tradition and constant quest to craft the finest and most elegant Cabernet Sauvignon based blend. while showcasing the terroir of the Aconcagua Valley.
 
­The 2018 season was considered to be perfect. It is the result of one of those rare occasions in which all of the conditions aligned to achieve the best expression of the terroir. ­These exceptional conditions resulted in a unique balance between potency and elegance that delivered wines with great depth, flavour intensity, outstanding freshness, and tremendous ageing potential.
 
We opened a bottle last night and it is an absolutely beautiful wine. Made from Bordeaux varieties but this is nothing like a Bordeaux wine – made mostly from Cabernet Sauvignon, but the quality of tannins is so high that this is silky soft already, far more approachable than a 2018 Bordeaux would be, but then the flavour profile is also markedly different. This is an elegant, restrained wine, with a lovely peppery leafiness and hints of roasted coffee that leads into a core of beautifully ripe, fresh red fruits with a slightly spicy green herb note on the finish, and then some darker fruits come through after. This is a very serious wine which is available at a fraction of what you would have to pay for the equivalent quality in Bordeaux, and it also has the structure to improve with age.

Critics who have tasted it are all very enthusiastic, with Tim Atkin awarding 97 points and noting the “overall excellence of the 2018 vintage,” and saying Don Maximiano is still “something of a bargain in elevated Chilean wine circles.” James Suckling scored 96 points, remarking how “the violets, roses, blueberries and blackcurrants flow from the glass,” and The Wine Advocate’s Luis Gutierrez called it a “serious wine, somewhat a little shy, pure, balanced and subtle, very complete and with integrated oak.”
 
The Don Maximiano vineyards are located in the Aconcagua Valley, around 100km north of Santiago, and the oldest among them are the Max I, Max II and Max V blocks. The region has a long dry season with moderately warm summer days cooled by the soft evening breezes that enter the valley from the Pacific Ocean. Cabernet Sauvignon and Carmenere vines were planted in 1978 and 1993, respectively, while the Petit Verdot was planted in 1999. The three vineyard blocks that contribute grapes for Don Maximiano Founder’s Reserve are planted on north or northeast facing hillsides with 5°–25° of slope. Soils are volcanic, colluvial and piedmont (Max I and II) or alluvial (Max V) in origin, with good drainage conferring low to moderate vigour. The colluvial and volcanic rocky soils of Max I show high presence of mica with clay-silt texture. Max II has deep colluvial soils of volcanic origin, with loam to sandy-loam texture, and both have 30–40% stone content. Max V has deep gravelly alluvial soils with 50% stone content and excellent drainage.