Why Chile matters
Chile is a long, thin ribbon of vineyards squeezed between the Andes and the Pacific. Natural barriers make it a reliable, sun-blessed source of clean, affordable, fruit-forward wine — with serious bottles too.
- It is one of the few places whose vines were never hit by the phylloxera louse.
- Cool air spills down from the Andes and in off the Pacific, keeping wines fresh.
- Carménère — a near-lost Bordeaux grape — found a new home here.
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Key idea: Carménère
For years Chile's Carménère was mistaken for Merlot. Rediscovered in 1994, it's now the country's signature red — deep, smooth, with a savoury, peppery edge.