Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All Vintages
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.
The Maipo Valley is Chile’s most famous wine region. Set in the country’s Central Valley, it is warm and quite dry, often necessitating the use of irrigation. Alluvial soils predominate but are supplemented with loam and clay.
The climate in Maipo is best-suited for ripe, full-bodied reds like Cabernet Sauvignon (the region’s most widely planted grape), Merlot, Syrah and Carmenère, a Bordeaux variety that has found a successful home in Chile.
White wines are also produced with great prosperity, especially near the cooler coast, include Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.