Región de Aconcagua

Chile

See detail of Región de Aconcagua

DESCRIPTION

It is the region that coincides with the administrative district of Valparaíso and where the highest peak in the entire southern hemisphere is located, the Aconcagua at 6,962 meters. It is bordered to the north by the Coquimbo Region, to the south by the Central Valley, to the east by the Andes Mountains and to the west by the Pacific Ocean. With its capital in Valparaíso, the wines of this warm region of the valley are characterized by being ripe, with low acidity and high alcohol with firm tannins, as is the most common Cabernet Sauvignon. This is where the Córpora group and the Errázuriz winery are located, which is committed to more modern and less alcoholic wines with blends, syrah (here is their boom) and petit verdot, as well as applying methods close to biodynamics.

NUMBER OF HECTARES: 8,523

ALTITUDE RANGE: Altitudes up to 900 meters in the case of the easternmost vineyards, and the Coastal Range in the western vineyards.

PREDOMINANT VARIETIES: In whites, chardonnay predominates and to a lesser extent sauvignon blanc. Among reds, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère and Pinot Noir.

CLIMATE AND SOILS

Semi-desert climate with a lot of heat that provides riper wines that can become more elegant thanks to the influence of the winds coming from the Andes. In these differences caused by the proximity to the sea or the mountain slopes, the harvests are lengthened or shortened. Sandy soils and rock near the hills and the Aconcagua River. Limestone soils in the valley.

PRODUCING AREAS

1. Aconcagua Valley. 1,007 has.

2. Casablanca Valley. 5,710 has. Located in the territories of Santiago and Valparaíso. It is far from having homogeneous soils. In the middle of the coastal mountain range, Casablanca receives the cool breezes of the Humboldt current. This phenomenon gives rise to fogs caused by the collision of the sea breeze with hot soils, which reduces the time of exposure to the sun, in addition to the higher humidity, which causes real headaches due to the higher incidence of cryptogamic diseases (see page 110). In San Antonio and Casablanca there is a greater contrast between day and night due to the lower altitude compared to areas further inland. A more mature character is perceived in wines from the Upper Casablanca as opposed to the more acidic wines from the Lower Casablanca. The risk of frost is lower on the slopes but it is still a complicated area for planting long-cycle grapes. It has been confirmed as an interesting area for riesling, chardonnay and sauvignonc blanc whites, the latter offering more herbal and vegetal nuances than in other areas. Syrah has become an aromatic model, even more so in the deep, mineral granite soils of the hills.

3. San Antonio Valley. 1,806 ha. South of the Casablanca Valley, rather than a valley as it is named in the law, it is an area dominated by basins that encompasses the western slopes of the Sierra de la Costa and therefore the area closest to the sea. It can be considered the western fringe of the Maipo Valley even though it is inserted in the Aconcagua DO. Its gravel and granite soils contribute mineral flavors to the wines. Wines with short cycles that come from the cold, such as chardonnay, pinot noir and of course, sauvignon blanc, triumph thanks to its quality clones, microclimate and harvest date. Its history begins in 2001 thanks to pioneering wineries such as Viña Leyda or Casa Marín. It includes the areas of Leyda, Rosario and Lo Abarca, the first being the most extensive, where new quality investments are concentrated thanks to having the coolest climate of Chile's winegrowing areas.

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