The famous Casillero del Diablo wine cellar at Concha y Toro´s birthplace. Photo by Kendal Montgomery.
Chile and wine are basically synonymous. And that makes me very happy to live here.
With hundreds of vineyards to tour and wines to savor, one could spend a long and joyous time in this grand country. However, if you´re not a millionaire, but still would like to get a taste, may I recommend you visit the very well-known Concha y Toro vineyard.
Recently named the second most powerful wine brand in the world by Intangible Business, Concha y Toro is a huge force in the world´s wine industry and fortunately, is right in our back yard.
Located in Pirque, just 27 kilometers south of Santiago, their tourist center location—the brand´s founding grounds—is classy and absolutely gorgeous. At the foot of the Andes, in the heart of the Maipo River Valley, the views alone are worth the trip. Add that environment with incredible wines, rich in all the right flavors, and you will have attained perfection.
Concha y Toro offers two kinds of tours in multiple languages. Their website however only mentions their basic tour, which lasts for about 40 minutes with two tastings. The thing to know though, the inside scoop will you, is that there is a bigger, better package lasting longer and including five tastings, two of which are very "fine" wines. The first basic tour costs $7,000 CLP per person, the extended $16,000 CLP; all tours include a complementary, really nice wine glass engraved with the Concha y Toro logo.
Tours are given seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. and require reservations. Though I can only speak for the basic tour—only because I didn´t know about the extended one until we got there and it was full—it was fantastic. The guide was expressive and showed us around the original owner Don Melchor Concha y Toro´s extensive gardens and mansion, the vineyards and the wine cellars with the famous Casillero del Diablo cellar.
The Casillero del Diablo line has a great story behind it. Back in its beginnings, the wine was so good that barrels always came up missing, as the workers were finding ways to sneak in at night and steal them. Knowing how superstitious the work-hands were, Don Melchor decided to move the barrels to an underground cellar, explaining it to be possessed by the Devil. And so the story goes, not another barrel ever came up missing. Also kept down there are the family´s personal collection, under lock and key, with bottles dating back to the late 80´s.
Aside from the tours, they also have a lovely restaurant and patio to lunch, munch on some cheese, or simply drink more wine. And surprisingly, everything is very fairly priced. Two of my favorites of the day were their 2009 Trio Sauvignon Blanc, a fresh mixture of grapes from three of their valleys: Casablanca, Rapel and Limari; and the Don Melchor, a bold Cabernet Sauvignon. Of course, their Carménéres are a pleasure to the palate as well. Truthfully, it´s all good!
As mentioned in our Bike and Wine article, there are plenty of wineries in the area to explore, Concha y Toro is yet one more option.
Happy seeing, swirling, sniffing, sipping and savoring!
Reservations: Online
Telephone: (56 2) 476 5269 y (56 2) 853 1063
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