Chile: Thinking Outside The Box

BY JOAQUÍN HIDALGO | JUNE 06, 2023

Apalta, Chile, one March morning. The veil of mist shrouding the mountain ridge that lends the region its name has only just lifted. Up on the slopes, the native forest perfumes the air, with its litre, peumo and quillay trees still vividly green despite the dry season. Lower down, a patchwork of vineyards crisscrosses the reddish soil.  

This relatively small Denomination of Origin is a microcosm of everything Chile has to offer. Major wineries like Montes, Neyén, Clos Apalta, Carmen and Ventisquero have bases here. However, there are also several small but venerable concerns, such as those run by the Cánepa, Muñoz and Quijada families. They were already well established in the early nineties when the region began Apalta’s meteoric rise to the top of the pile, making its name with a series of excellent reds.   

The topography of the Cordillera de la Costa varies from the gentle slopes of Itata to sheer ravines like the one seen in the photo in Cachapoal. In the background, we see the mountain’s southern slope, the cooler side, which hosts a lush, green native forest even at the end of the dry season.

Amid the vines, several new hotels and residential neighborhoods are also popping up; a rural setting with good connections to the outside world attracts developers. The wine industry is largely responsible for said boom across this natural amphitheater in the Central Valley.

That March morning, toward the end of my trip, one thing became clear: anchored by longstanding tradition in some areas while experiencing rapid change in others, the industry is looking for a path that meets everyone’s needs, including the part of Chile in touch with the outside world with a thriving export business and the part more focused on grapes and styles suiting the domestic market.  

I asked what might sound like a stupid question to Aurelio Montes, one of the leading figures in Chilean wine, who, at the age of seventy-four, has now overseen fifty-two harvests and is the president of Wines of Chile: “With all your experience and having seen how Apalta has transformed in recent years, where do you think the future of the wine business in Chile really lies?”  

Montes hesitated for a moment.

“I don’t really know how to answer your question,” he said. “But I’ll tell you something that a Franciscan monk friend of mine told me many years ago, something that’s making a lot of sense to me these days: ‘In life, success, money and happiness are like butterflies. The more you chase them, the further they fly away, but if you only stand still, you might find that they come to land on your shoulder.’”  

I felt he wasn’t talking to me but to a much larger audience, the entirety of the Chilean wine industry.

The aging room at Bodega De Martino one February afternoon. In addition to used barrels, large and small, the winery has a collection of casks and foudres that can be seen behind the barrels. The trend in Chile today is heading toward a more rational use of oak.

Several New Paths

Chilean producers are increasingly concerned that their wines are beginning to lose the wider public’s interest. You might think they’re right until you take the trouble to taste them in detail. While some are committed to following trends that will open up new markets, more interesting things are happening outside the glare of the spotlight.

This is why the butterfly metaphor seems so apt.

After traveling approximately 2,800 miles, tasting over a thousand wines and visiting around forty wineries and vineyards for this report, I believe that the most exciting wines in Chile are made outside the commercial box. Some are firmly plugged into the rat race, understandably trying to hit the sales sweet spot, but others patiently study the different variables existing in their terroirs, trying out new styles and ideas that might open up new flavor horizons.

Inside that box, we find the ripe, indulgent reds that Chile sells en masse in the $12 price range and below. Outside that box, we find dry, vibrant whites, silky, taut reds of the coast, and other profound, fairly concentrated reds from the Secano interior dry farming area that are anything but sweet. These are wines that offer distinctive, alternative flavor palettes, wines that seasoned drinkers will enjoy discovering.

This is my fourth Chile report for Vinous. Over that time, I have developed a more nuanced knowledge of the different regions and also met many producers who are following their convictions to introduce new styles and profiles. Overall, it is my belief that the wines of Chile are being improved by these new ideas and approaches, and this is reflected in my scores. Another contributing factor is that many of the wines this year came from a cool year, 2021, and it had a wonderful effect: there are a number of bottles that these revamped philosophies that are very much worth trying.

Below, I delve further into these trends by region.

The soils of the Cordillera de la Costa range are rich in meteorized granite, as seen at the Belén vineyard belonging to Viña Morandé in Casablanca (right). In Chile, these soils are known as maicillo. However, the range also features soils rich in slate and schists, as seen in this fragment (left) from the unusual metamorphosed volcanic soil at the La Cornellana vineyard belonging to Viña La Rosa in Peumo.

Maule, Itata and the Secano

The Maule region exemplifies this concept. Located about 120 miles south of Santiago, it boasts the largest area under vine in Chile, about 52,800 hectares, a third of which are dry farmed. With 20 Denominations of Origin, Maule encompasses a range of different settings, from the rich, fertile valleys of Curicó to the clay slopes of the Secano region. In terms of flavor, they’re worlds apart.  

One morning, I tasted fourteen VIGNO wines produced by members of the Viñadores de Carignan Association, who harvest from old, dry-farmed vines almost exclusively located in the communes of San Javier de Loncomilla (8,700 ha) and Cauquenes (7,600 ha). Both are part of the Secano interior area on the Cordillera de la Costa mountain range, an unirrigated zone. It only used to rain there in good years – now only very good years see rain. This is why old vines are so important. Carignan produces reds with sour cherry aromas and tartly acidic, tongue-tickling palates with refined tannins.

After that morning, I tasted many wines from parts of Maule where the climate and soils favor greater concentration, which achieved their best expressions in 2021 when the weather was cool. These extreme Bordelais reds include the 2019 Cabernet Franc Hacedor de Mundos, the 2021 Field Blend Undugarra and the 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Baettig Los Compadres.

That same day, in the afternoon, I climbed up to the Commune of Empedrado (51 ha) in the coastal Secano. It’s a mountainous region with more significant rainfall, and proximity to the sea ensures a cooler climate. At the vineyard with a series of terraces chiseled out of the granite belonging to Miguel Torres, I had a vertical tasting from 2012 to 2019 of Pinot Noir Escaleras de Empedrado, whose forthright palates are an excellent example of the effects of the cooler climate. Still, in Empedrado, I tasted a few skinny País and Carignans that deliver precise, fruity flavor made by Garage Wine Co. These came from the Truquilemu Vineyard, which is tilled by horse and boasts plants that are often older than the people tending to them.

A plain of deep clay soils in Colchagua, where the Tinguinirica River flows into the Chimbarongo estuary. This is where the Viña Los Maquis vineyard is planted. This year, employing less severe methods than the previous season, the winery took their Cabernet Sauvignon and Franc to another level.

A Mountain Range Worth Visiting

San Javier de Loncomilla, Cauquenes and Empedrado are part of a larger area that is engine room to many of the new wines of Chile: the Cordillera de La Costa mountain range, where there are granite-rich soils and a variety of different exposures due to the variable topography. Here the climate is kept cool by the Humboldt Ocean Current. From Biobío and Itata to the south, up through Maule, Leyda and Casablanca and as far as Limarí, the Current affects 450 miles of coastline between Concepción and La Serena. Along this long stretch, the biome changes from perennial forest to arid desert, but the soils and temperatures remain consistent.

Perhaps “engine room” is a bit of an exaggeration. Maule, Itata and Biobío are rural areas where vines have been grown since the 18th century, especially the País variety. Also known as Mission, Criolla or Listán Prieto in the USA, Argentina and Spain, respectively, País – as it’s generally known in Chile – arrived in colonial times. Rustic and sturdy, it can handle the severe conditions found in dry farming areas as its roots delve deep.

In Chile, 10,500 hectares are planted with País, especially in the regions mentioned above, and producers are experimenting with different styles. Some, like the Almaule collective, are producing light, fruity reds, not unlike scruffy versions of Pinot Noir. Others are milder and more precise, including the 2022 País Granítico A Los Viñateros Bravos and the 2022 País Viejo Bouchon. Some are more potent and liqueur-like such as the 2021 País Águila de Itata and the 2021 País Rojo Paraíso. While many Países are too tannic to catch the eye, those that manage to keep the tannins in check tend to stimulate one’s curiosity and saliva glands, establishing a new but recognizably Chilean profile.

From Maule to Biobío, people like to talk about honoring heritage while the native forest lends the wines notes of boldo herb and garrigue. However, things are different further north, where the lack of rainfall is a defining factor. Here, the skillful, precise expertise unlocks attractive terroirs and pure aromas.

Oenologist Francisco Baettig is pictured at the Los Primos vineyard in Traiguén, fifty miles from the town of Temuco. This is a cool area where Pinot Noir and Chardonnay present a new subtle range of qualities, as seen in the wines produced by Baettig, Aquitania and Tayu. The soils are primarily volcanic.

Coastal Whites

The valleys of the Cordillera de la Costa stretch west and north of Santiago, offering a distinctive flavor profile. Casablanca is the oldest and, therefore, best-known region; planted since the 1990s as a mainly white terroir (5,000 hectares overall, of which 3,800 are whites). The region branches out into five valleys; the Las Dichas sector to the east is the coolest, while La Vinilla to the west is the warmest.

Casablanca is currently going through a process of renewal. The lack of water in recent years left its mark on the poor genetic stock of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, which are currently being replaced. I saw good examples of this in Campo Belén, which belongs to the Morandé winery, and in the hills around Casas del Bosque. In contrast, the Sauvignon Blancs (2,200 ha) offer mostly citrus and rue profiles with tropical hints. Good examples are the 2022 Sauvignon Blanc EQ, the 2022 Sauvignon Blanc Casas del Bosque La Cantera and the 2022 Sauvignon Blanc Ritual.

Not far from there, Leyda accounts for a fifth of the vineyards of Casablanca, with about 1,000 hectares under vine. It was planted in the latter half of the 2000s with better stock and more precise techniques. Leyda overlooks the Pacific Ocean and is all the better for it; the ocean spray almost sprinkles the vines in some places. The local Sauvignon Blanc (770ha) gets the best out of the cloudy mornings and sunny afternoons on the coast. Planted in granite/clay soils, the profile tends to be enticing yellow pepper and rue aromas with sharp acidity and a fatty palate. The 2022 Sauvignon Blanc Amayna Cordón Huinca and the 2022 Sauvignon Blanc Leyda Lot 4 are perfect examples, but they’re far from the only ones.  

Limarí, about 220 miles north of Santiago, is an exclusive neighborhood home to several new Chardonnays (780ha). Here the coastal desert adds the distinctive quality of the widely present marine limestone to the soils. An aromatic profile produced by a cool but sunny area – green apple with hints of creamed corn – is accompanied by a saline, chalky palate, as seen in the 2022 Chardonnay Talinay Caliza and the 2021 Chardonnay Amelia. A similar character which brings even greater salinity to the wines can be found in Huasco, a pocket of vineyards further to the north in the Atacama Desert, as seen with the 2021 Chardonnay Tara and the 2022 Chardonnay De Mai.

Along with the aforementioned coastal varieties, I must save space for Syrah. A generally undervalued wine, the variety is excelling in these terroirs. Some present a skeletal palate with accomplished, fresh, fruity flavor and spice, as seen in 2013 Syrah Casa Marín Litoral, which is given a silky feel by the good acidity. Others combine balsamic, peppery qualities with the flesh and blood flavors of iron-rich soils. These include the 2021 Syrah Matetic and the 2022 Syrah Montes Outer Limits. Meanwhile, an exotic wine for the Andes, the 2021 Syrah Tococo from Alcohuaz in the Elqui Valley, reaches new heights of flavor.  

In Empedrado, in the Maule region, the Spanish winemaker Miguel Torres planted a north-facing terraced vineyard in 1995. The area is cool due to the effect of the currents coming off the sea and has slate-rich soils from the Cordillera de la Costa. Following a forest fire, it had to be replanted in 2017, so the supports remain.  

A New Paradigm for the Reds

The Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins region is the second-most widely planted in Chile, with 41,500 hectares under vine, most of them reds. But no one in the world of wine knows it by that name. Its two valleys are far more famous: Colchagua and Cachapoal, which form the Rapel Valley together. Seeking to familiarize myself with them in detail, I traveled from one end to the other. Although each valley is distinct, their reds both tend to be sucrose with taut tannins.

The main varieties in Colchagua are Carménère (3,800ha) and Cabernet Sauvignon (11,000ha). The valley runs from Los Lingues up in the Andes to Marchigüe and Pumanque on the Cordillera de la Costa. Vines are planted along a 60-mile stretch from the slopes of the Andes – where Viña Koyle is located in Los Lingues – to the granite-rich soils further west – home to Luis Felipe Edwards in Puquillay and Montes and Ventisquero in Apalta. Exposures range from bare, north-facing (and thus warmer) fields to south-facing (cooler) forested areas. But there are also plains where the meandering rivers deposit layer after layer of clay and warmer communes such as Santa Cruz and Peralillo. In short, Colchagua is difficult to sum up as the crow flies.  

This is also why things are changing. When I visited the Los Maquis winery, for example, I encountered a stylistic shift that we’re also seeing from other producers. Oenologist Rodrigo Romero discussed this with me three years ago: the stylistic rule had been to engineer lower yields in the vineyards for greater concentration, an approach that wasn’t quite authentic to an area that already naturally provides good concentration. The new technique goes the other way, producing balanced reds that, along with well-judged extraction, present a profile in which the onus is on flavor and a distinctive character. The results can be enjoyed in glasses filled with the 2019 Carménère Maquis Viola, the 2020 Carménère Floresta, the 2020 Carménère Caliterra or the 2020 Carménère Dagaz, all of which are excellent proponents.  

In Cachapoal, something similar is happening with the tannins of the same varieties. The challenge of sculpting them in detail has been taken on with relish by Concha y Toro, whose winery is in Peumo, right at the halfway mark between the valleys. Here, the vineyards are planted in clay-rich soils with plenty of water. The secret to ripe Carménère lies in not forcing the wines in the winemaking even if grapes can be harvested as late as the end of April. In a cool year such as 2021, the region leaps up the quality ladder, producing rich clarity. Marzio Ramírez, the oenologist in charge of the operation, told me, “It was the perfect year for our style.” In the valley, these sentiments are widely spread and at every scale, from small producers, as seen in the 2021 Carménère Serendipia, to the much larger Viña La Rosa, who are responsible for the 2021 Carménère Cornellana Vulcano Sedimentario.

The work of La Rosa is stimulating further change in the region: after mapping all the soils on their estate, which spans 630 hectares, they segmented their output by the soil type of each parcel: granitic, volcanic and sedimentary. The result is wines that offer new flavor palates for Cachapoal. La Rosa is the best instance, but many other producers in the region are growing more precise in their viticulture to the extent that it might be described as a new paradigm. Again, the contrast between established methods and out-of-the-box thinking produces an attractive, original combination.  

The oenologist Emily Faulconer runs Viña Carmen, based in Maipo. She's making a stylish series of wines using grapes from old vines and long-established producers in other regions.  

Small Producers, Big Ideas

For more hotbeds of creativity in Chile, it’s worth looking to small producers. They contribute a wide range of ideas, experimenting enthusiastically as they await their butterfly moment. They are to be found producing Italian and Mediterranean varieties, “Aliens to Chile that contribute plenty of structure and not much weight,” as the oenologist Andrés Sánchez describes them, or adopting ancestral techniques such as zaranda straining, or modern ones such as the use of dry ice and concrete Galileo spheres.

Many of these wines don’t find their way beyond the country’s borders. 

To offer an idea, in Marchigüe, Colchagua, I visited an experimental winery called Incubadora de Innovación para la Vid y el Olivo (Innovation Incubator for Vines and Olives, IIVO). There, they ferment grapes from about twenty producers exploring all manner of different varieties, none of whom crafts more than 5,000 bottles. Then there’s Movi, who promotes the wines of independent producers, from whom I tasted 150 labels this year.

Of all these, I’d single out orange wines made with Muscat of Alexandria from Itata. The technique was used in colonial times but now adds a new dimension to modern whites with an original flavor profile that includes basil and Muscat aromas. Similar things are being done with Cinsault, Garnacha and Monastrell, albeit with results of varying quality. And it’s not just small producers: larger wineries such as Viña Carmen and De Martino are also experimenting with this style.

The sign should have read “This isn’t Merlot” in this vineyard belonging to the Muñoz family in Colchagua because the vines are Carménère. The sign is the result of a misidentification only discovered in 1994.

Meanwhile, in the deep south, an entirely distinctive vision is taking shape in Traiguén, about 250 miles south of Santiago. A series of vineyards planted in the 1990s, such as those belonging to Aquitania, lie alongside newer ones planted by Vinos Baettig. These pockets of vines sit near 100 hectares planted in volcanic soils that are already producing high-class Chardonnays and Pinots. Indigenous communities hotly contest ownership of the land in this region, but maybe the 2022 Pinot Noir Tayu Vineyard run by Viña San Pedro offers a way forward: 22.5 hectares are tended to by the Buchahueico and Hueico Chico communities, with a good minimum price for the grapes guaranteed for the next ten years. It seems a promising and unprecedented model for growth across the region.

An invisible common thread runs throughout Chile between new and old styles, classical and newer regions. If you pull on it, the many different flavor profiles to be found in the country will unfold. And perhaps that’s what we need to do: simply observe as we wait for the butterflies Montes mentioned to settle on the chosen producers. And while which ones these will be is always going to be difficult to anticipate, in the meantime, readers can try them out for themselves: the bottles are there, ready and waiting.

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