Return to New World Wines

Chile

Wine from Chile is par­ti­cu­lar­ly cha­rac­te­ri­zed by an ele­gant and sil­ky cha­rac­ter, which is pre­cis­e­ly due to the pro­xi­mi­ty to the Pacific Ocean and the Andes. Due to the high alti­tu­des and the coo­ling sea wind, the gra­pes slow­ly ripen to excep­tio­nal qua­li­ty. With about 500 mil­li­on liters of wine annu­al­ly, Chile holds the fifth place among wine export­ing count­ries worldwide.

The most famous Chilean wine regi­ons are the Valle Central and the Maipo Valley. The vel­ve­ty red wines and flowery white wines are cle­ar­ly the rising stars overseas.

Main gra­pe varie­ties (WHITE):
Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay Fruity, flo­ral yet mild, this is the best way to descri­be the cha­rac­ter of Chilean white wines.

Most important gra­pe varie­ties (RED)
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Carmenere
If the­re is one varie­ty that empha­ti­cal­ly under­lines the uni­que­ness of Chilean wine, it is the old French gra­pe varie­ty Carménère, ori­gi­nal­ly from Bordeaux.

Main regi­ons
Central Valle with the sub­re­gi­ons of Maule and Maipo

from coun­try reports WEIN+MARKT 3|2023

Slight decli­ne in pro­duc­tion, espe­ci­al­ly of bulk wine — but ahead of Australia in value and well ahead of South Africa.