Wineletter #243 August 2018

South America

Chile and Argentina, the home of cheap reds and juicy Malbec? Well, it used to be, and that widely embraced misconception is part of their problem. However, a quick look at some of the stunning wineries within the next few pages should burst that bubble.

Chile is somewhat reminiscent of much of New Zealand ten years ago, and there are definite similarities to our respective winemaking histories. It was the Spanish who first introduced the grape vine there; then shortly after, the French varieties arrived. Fortunately, what never arrived was the invasive, all-destroying Phylloxera; that little louse had little taste for either the soil or the Andes.

The Chilean wine industry has historically been centred around Santiago and the Central Valley, where easy access saw winemaking boom. Old areas in the south that were first populated were often planted with the Pais variety, long a mainstay of Chilean white wine. While the central Maipo Valley remains a very important player, there continues to be much change. New ‘old’ varieties are being championed, Chilean Cinsault for instance, and the regions of production have become wider and more diverse, extending to the north and to the south, from down on the coast to deep in the Andes.