The Chile Region
Chile is a long, slender country. From tip to tip, Chile is about 2,700 miles – the same distance from the US’s east coast to west coast! Chile is a land with many different climates, from volcanos to glaciers, from deserts to ocean. This gives the Chileans ample climates to grow grapes in.
The Spanish took over Chile centuries ago and there are now around 13 million residents in this country, both of Spanish and the native American descent. Many of those Spanish immigrants brought grape vines with them, and the rest is history.
If you’re doing a Chilean themeed evening, be sure to use the national colors of red, white and blue. Red is for the people, white for the snow, and blue for the sky.
Chilean wines are not sold by region, but are sold by wine type. You can find many traditional French grape varietals here, from Cabernet Sauvignon to Chardonnay and more.
Intriguingly, because of Chile’s mountains and sandy soil, the phylloxera louse never really got a foothold here. So while France all has vines planted on American rootstock, the Chileans are able to have natural, authentic vines – many of which are older than those in France!