Santa Carolina Specialties Dry Farming Carignan 2008
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One of Chile’s oldest wineries, Santa Carolina was established in 1875 by Luis Pereira, named after his wife, Carolina Iñguez. In 1889, the Reserva de Familia Cabernet Sauvignon was awarded a gold medal in “Exposition Universelle de Paris”, France, which made it the first Chilean wine to earn international recognition. The cellars in Santiago, Chile were declared a National Monument in 1973 to protect them from demolition due to city expansion. In 1974 the winery was bought by the Larain Family from Chile. In 2015, Santa Carolina celebrated it’s 140th anniversary and was awarded the “New World Winery of the Year” award by Wine Enthusiast magazine. Annual sales now exceed 25 million bottles, and Santa Carolina has a strong international presence with markets all over the world offering wines in all price ranges,
More than 20 million US dollars have been invested over 2014-2019 to ensure the highest quality in the production of their wines. These investments and continuous innovation provide consistent quality and numerous accolades across all wine ranges.
Responsible for some of the most stunning old vine red wine on the planet, Carignan has an amazing capacity to survive dry, arid climates and still produce lovely, mouthwatering wine. In Spain it goes by the name of Mazuelo or Cariñena and while it may have originated there in the province of Aragón, its popularity lies elsewhere, particularly in Languedoc-Roussillon. Somm Secret—Historically Carignan did not enjoy the respect that it does today. In the mid 20th century, Carignan covered nearly 140,000 ha in Algeria, where it was made into low quality bulk and blending wine to supply mass-market demand.
Maule is the Central Valley’s most southern and coolest zone, reaching a southern latitude of 35°S, yet it is still warmer and drier than Bío-Bío to its south. The Maule Valley enjoys success with a unique set of grapes.
It lays claim to the local variety, Pais (synonymous with Tinta Pais, which is actually Tempranillo), which has dominated much of the region’s area under vine until the recent past. Now many growers, not confined by the tradition and regulations of the Old World, also successfully grow Cabernet Sauvignon.
While Maule’s total area under vine remains relatively static, its old Carignan vineyards are undergoing a great revival. The VIGNO (Vignadores del Carignan Vintners) group, an association in charge of promoting this long-forgotten variety, is getting fantastic results from the old vines in its dry-farmed coastal zones.
The Maule includes the subregions of Talca, San Clemente, San Javier, Parral, Linares and Cauquenes.