Chile

Question 1

Chile’s widely travelled terrior consultant

Answer 1

Pedro Parra
consults globally by first defining the mother rock then geomorphology (hard/soft rock, slope) and lastly the atual soil from texture to porosity

Question 2

Soil overview

Answer 2

Ancient granite and in some places, schist and slate are found to the west of the country, while deep clay, loam, silt, and sand deposits are more common in the central plain between the coastas & andes are colluvial or alluvial

Question 3

Chile’s main struggle is

Answer 3

water. even the Inca’s dug an impressive series of canals for irrigation, they are sparse today.

Question 4

Chile is ___________ free

Answer 4

phylloxera

Question 5

What was the most planted grape in Chile until the 1990s?

Answer 5

pias, criolla chica in argentina, or mission in california. most inexpensive but some quality in maule and itata.

Question 6

What are the highest vineyards in Chile?

Answer 6

Salar de Atacama 11,480 ft / 3,500 m but many are reaching 8,500 ft / 2,500 m. they produce “Allyu” (aka “community) which is a blend of syrah, malbec, pinot noir, and pias.

Question 7

Vina Falerina

Answer 7

Italian owned producing wine out of Elqui Valley is producing award-winning gutsy syrah at 6,600 ft / 2,000 m

Question 8

De Martino

Answer 8

even higher in the mountains of Elqui Valley, celebrated winemaker Marcelo Retamal has planted syrah at 7,237ft / 2,206 m on steep granite hillsides to create Vinedos de Alcohuaz

Question 9

Tabali

Answer 9

producing world-class sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, and pinot noir just 7.5 m / 12 m from the ocean. purchased by Concha y Toro in 2005 and renamed Vina Maycas del Limari

Question 10

How do Elqui and Limari differ?

Answer 10

Limari has no coastal range protecting it from the cold Pacific

Question 11

What is Aconcagua named after?

Answer 11

The highest peak of the Andes at 23,000 ft / 7,000 m

Question 12

Who had the largest single estate gloablly in the late 19th century?

Answer 12

The Errazuriz Family. Today they have 2,500 acres / 1,000 ha of vines in Aconcagua Valley. Winemaker Francisco Baettig produces Chile’s finest chard and pinot from vineyards planted in 2005 to the west of Colmo that recieved cool conditions like in Marlborough, NZ

Question 13

When did Casablanca Valley develop?

Answer 13

rapidly in the 1990s due to its refreshing sauvignon blanc and pinot noir. cool breezes create an afternoon temperature of 18 F / 10 C giving mild winters and long growing seasons. spring frost is an issue mitigated by resistant rootstock due to water shortage

Question 14

What did the success of Casablanca create?

Answer 14

San Antonio Valley was first planted in 1997 by Vina Ledya and officially recognized by 2002. it is even more open to pacific influence largely thin layers of red clay over granite

Question 15

San Antonio Valley pioneers

Answer 15

Vina Leyda, Casa Marin, Matetic, and Amanya

Question 16

What did Casa Marin win in 2018?

Answer 16

Lo Abarca as a delimited region known for being limestone and exceptionally cool located just 2.5 m / 4 km from the Pacific.

Question 17

Hardships of Maipo

Answer 17

smog and increasingly expensive land due to Santiago

Question 18

Why is Maipo planted so close to Santiago?

Answer 18

It was a tradtion of 19th-century gentleman to have extensive plantations off their homes. many of them established Chile’s largest wine companies like Concha y Toro, Santa Rita, and Santa Carolina. It was here the first generation of serious wine was born. reminiscent of Napa Valley with a touch of eucalyptus.

Question 19

Peunte Alto

Answer 19

this is where vineyard creep up the Andean foothills. this is home to Chile’s great Cabernets: Almaviva, Domus Aurea, Casa Real of Santa Rita, Haras de Pirque, and Vinedo Chadwick

Question 20

Sub-regions of Rapel

Answer 20

Cachapoal: Rancagua, Requiona, and Rengo
Colchagua: San Fernando, Nancagua, Chimbarongo, Marchigue, Los Lingues, and Apalta

Question 21

Los Lingues

Answer 21

new DO of Rapel created in 2018, located in the Andean foothills just north of San Fernando

Question 22

Apalta

Answer 22

new DO of Rapel created in 2018, has a distinctive horseshoe shape where Montes and Lapastolle produce fine wine

Question 23

Luis Felipe Edwards

Answer 23

planted carmenere in Colchagua at 3,300 ft / 1,000 m, creating Chile’s reputation for the grape

Question 24

Paredones area

Answer 24

located in Colchagua very close to the pacific and is a source of excellent whites. clay, silty loam, sand, and volcanic soil.

Question 25

Curico (Lontue Zone)

Answer 25

(Curico) more temperate climate with less need for irrigation. the average rainfall is 10x higher than Elqui and the risk of frost is persistent. protected by the Coastal Range

Question 26

Miguel Torres of Catalunya

Answer 26

famously invested in a winery in Curico in 1979 as an act of faith in undiscovered wine regions (same year that Philippe Rothschild struck another seminal transatlantic deal with Robert Mondavi). His Manso de Velasco is one of Chile’s most delicate cabs. /// Recently has been investing in planting Empedrado, Western Maule and its slate soils to Pinot Noir… maybe even some sparkling pias

Question 27

San Pedro Winery at Molino

Answer 27

(Curico) the winery is surrounded by South America’s largest block of vines 3,000 acres / 1,200 ha which is run with tactical precision

Question 28

Curico’s newest DO

Answer 28

Licanten DO, cooled by the nearby Pacific

Question 29

The southernmost subregion of the Central Valley and one of the oldest wine regions

Answer 29

Maule. dry summers but annually double the rainfall of Santiago and Chile’s greatest area of vines on substantially volcanic soils. largely planted with pias, cab sauve, malbec, and sauv blanc for mass production but is home to incredible old vine carignan.

Question 30

Vigno

Answer 30

an initiative created in 2010 to showcase old-vine Maule Carignan. Members vary from gigantic Concha y Toro & Undurraga to lil Gillmore & Meli

Question 31

Chile’s first coastal vineyard to be planted was in _________

Answer 31

Itata

Question 32

What was Chile’s first internationally recognized wine that encouraged plantings further south?

Answer 32

Vina Aquitania’s Sol de Sol Chardonnay from Malleco

Question 33

Osorno

Answer 33

A cold, wet region 575 m / 980 km south of Santiago with a few small plantings of Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, and Riesling. well south of Malleco

Question 34

Mechuque Island

Answer 34

south of Osorno even, Montes has experimental plantings of 5 varietals including pinot noir and riesling

Question 35

The most southern grape-related moment in Chile

Answer 35

A research station in Chile Chico, Patagonia