Chilean Wine

Chile has built its modern reputation on Carmenere, a grape once grown widely in Bordeaux before phylloxera wiped it out there, only for cuttings mistaken for Merlot to survive and thrive in Chile's isolated valleys. It's since been correctly identified and now stands as the country's signature variety, producing smoky, spice-edged reds with a distinctive green pepper note. Beyond Carmenere, Chile's long, narrow geography, squeezed between the Andes and the Pacific, gives producers an unusually wide range of climates to work with, from warm inland valleys to cooler coastal sites suited to varieties like Pinot Noir. If you'd like to compare against South America's other major wine-producing country, Argentinian Wine is worth a look, and Merlot covers the variety Carmenere was once mistaken for.