The second half of our Chile tour was devoted to the Colchagua Valley. This valley is synonymous with some of Chile’s most iconic wines, despite the fact that it is perceived as a relatively new winemaking region.
A two hour drive south of Santiago allowed us to arrive in good time for our first visit of the day at Vina Montes.
I have been selling Montes wines for a number of years and Aurelio Montes, the founder, is seen as a true pioneer of premium quality Colchagua wines. It is a seriously impressive winery – gravity fed and with a very picturesque barrel cellar with Gregorian chants piped through 24 hours a day – just the same as at Kaiken, its sister winery, which we had visited a few days ago in Mendoza.
Nastacia hosted our visit and she was superb. Full of detailed information, we took a tour of the winery and ended up in their very impressive tasting room with a lineup of wines that reflected a range of qualities.
Montes spoilt us by putting on three of their icon wines – Purple Angel, Folly and Apalta M – at the end.
It was a superb tasting and then we headed outside to their beautiful outdoor restaurant overlooking the vineyards and hills. Breathtaking views and incredible food. Beetroot salad, perfectly cooked ribeye and a smoked pineapple dessert. Truly delicious.
At this point, you could be forgiven for thinking that would be the end of the day – but no another visit beckoned in Santa Cruz and the winery of Laura Hartwig. This winery was created in 1978 when Alejandro and Laura Hartwig planted French varietals on their family estate as their ‘retirement project’. Today it is managed by their children, and have led the development of the Colchagua Valley as a supplier of premium wines and wonderful tourism.
We needed a lift from the stupor of a good lunch with an abundance of wine and Nelson, the estate manager provided the perfect pickup. Positively bouncing with energy, Nelson kept us amused and informed with a lively walk into the vines and winery and gave us a great insight into the family history.
The four wines we tasted were really well made and we ended our day with a very high quality impression of the Colchagua Valley.
