Chilean Wine

Schedule your trip for a tasting or a tour, don't rely on chance

My first taste of red wine was Chilean, a Concha Y Toro, to be exact. The vineyard’s website says their wine “is recognized as the most admired wine in South America since 2016.” I bought my first bottle in 1992 and was hooked, especially at $6 per bottle.

My first vineyard tour and wine tasting were a long time ago when I was on a college trip to visit my roommate’s hometown of Sacramento, California. We went to Napa Valley and had a blast. Nothing on that trip was scheduled. If we liked a vineyard we saw, we stopped the car and joined the tour.

That was 1979, and I thought things would not change just because it was over thirty years later and a different country. Silly me.

When your friend Wendy B (sommelier extraordinaire) tells you to go to a vineyard in Chile, Viña Montes, and you ignore her, you do so at your peril, especially since the woman knows exactly what you drink and why. (Stop rolling your eyes, Wendy. I promise I’ll pay attention next time.)

Leaving Santiago, we drove to the coast, and in the Casablanca Valley, I marked the vineyards we could try on the way back. Note that these vineyards were opposite to where Wendy told me to go. (Of course, they were.)

The first attempt was to Kingston Family Vineyards. The guard was very nice, and through the translation app we learned that the entire vineyard was closed for a Fourth of July party (we were there on the 6th) held by invitation only. This vineyard has general wine tasting, premium pinot tasting, lunch pairings, cooking classes, master classes, etc. I learned on the website that the originator of this vineyard was from the UP of Michigan, thus the July 4th party.

Lesson 1: Make a reservation

Our second attempt was at Casas Del Bosque. The photos in this post are from that winery. Also located in the Casablanca Valley, this award-winning vineyard is surrounded by beautiful gardens, several stone restaurants, a wine shop, a tasting room, and the winery itself. The problem? Everything is discussed in Spanish, and we would have understood little.

Lesson 2: Make that reservation for a private tour in English (or whatever language you speak fluently.)

We gave up trying to get into that vineyard because the restaurants were packed, and the crowds on the waiting list milled around the grounds. However, this did not stop us from pestering every waiter during the rest of our trip about the Chilean wines. Our suitcases are full of bottles, and we feel the trip was successful.

Lesson 3: Make those reservations way in advance before you reach Chile.

I’ve learned my lessons.