Final Up to date on February 7, 2026 by Eve Dawes
Chile vineyard excursions, vineyards, eating places & lodging in Colchagua Valley
Colchagua Valley, Chile is among the finest wine areas in Chile, famend for producing a few of the finest Chilean wine. The Colchagua Valley wine area is legendary worldwide, significantly for its pink wine, with iconic producers equivalent to Lapostolle placing Chile firmly on the worldwide wine map. Whereas researching one of the best Chilean wine area to go to for Chile vineyard excursions, Colchagua Valley constantly got here out on high because of its excellent vineyards, surroundings, and wine experiences. On this Colchagua Valley journey information, I’m sharing one of the best wineries together with a cease at Concha y Toro in Maipo Valley en route, wine excursions, genuine eating places with views, the resort we stayed at, and a prompt itinerary that can assist you plan your journey.
Chile has a number of unimaginable wine areas, however this information explains why we selected Colchagua Valley and easy methods to go to with out becoming a member of an organized group tour. I’ll additionally cowl one of the best eating places, lodging, and wineries to go to in Colchagua Valley, Chile, so you possibly can expertise the area at your individual tempo and benefit from this world-class wine vacation spot.
If you happen to don’t have greater than a day to spare, you are able to do a wine tasting day tour to Maipo Valley, one other fantastic Chilean wine area, from Santiago. We selected to go for longer and set up winery and vineyard excursions ourselves so we may go the place we wished and at our personal tempo.
Chile Wine Areas: The Prime 5 wine areas in Chile
These are considered the highest 5 wine areas in Chile:
- Colchagua Valley – is legendary for it’s Chile vineyard excursions. It’s truly within the Rapel Valley in Chile’s central valley simply South of Santiago however has turn into extra well-known than the area it’s in.
- Maipo Valley
- Limari Valley
- Aconcagua Valley
- Casablanca Valley
Is Chilean wine good?
Sure, you will discover many wonderful wines in Chile, no matter your palate. Chile is understood primarily for it’s pink wine, the most typical being Cabernet Sauvignon and the preferred being Carménère. Though, they’ve so many grape varieties all through their wine areas together with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blancs for my white wine drinkers. They
Spend 3 Days and three Nights in Colchagua Valley and Maipo Valley Wine Tasting in Chile
You’ll be able to e-book sooner or later Colchagua Valley wine excursions and Maipo Valley wine excursions from Santiago. Nevertheless, all of my household loves wine and winery landscapes so we knew we wanted greater than a day to go to all over the place. We like totally exploring areas, fairly than simply bouncing from winery to winery at break neck velocity. We did that sufficient the primary couple of occasions we went to Napa!
We additionally added a cease at Concha Y Toro in Maipo Valley because it’s en path to Santa Cruz, Colchagua Valley. It’s some of the widespread Chilean wines within the UK, the place my mother and father and I are from. Not solely is Concha Y Toro the most effective wineries in Maipo Valley however the most effective wineries in Chile, well-known for his or her ‘Casillero Del Diablo’. So we made this our first cease and I extremely suggest doing the identical.
That is how we spent our 3 days in Colchagua Valley, Chile wine tasting.
Colchagua & Maipo Valley wine area tour: Day 1
get to Colchagua Valley from Santiago
We flew into Santiago on Copa Airways (utilizing our United miles) and spent a few days there on the Icon Lodge. If you happen to’re planning on visiting there, learn the Santiago journey information for journey suggestions and recommendations.
Santa Cruz within the Colchagua Valley wine area is a couple of 2.5-3 hour drive south of Santiago and generally known as the “Napa of Chile”, producing primarily Cabs, Carmenere, Syrah and Merlot. In addition they do some nice whites and rosés for non pink wine lovers.
We drove from Santiago right down to our resort in Santa Cruz. This appeared to be the closest place to remain to the wineries in Colchagua Valley that we’d determined we wished to go to after plenty of analysis.
get to Concha Y Toro Vineyard Tour
Concha Y Toro vineyard is a couple of 45 minute drive South East of Santiago in Maipo Valley, Pirque. It may be complicated which of Concha Y Toros addresses to go to however its Avenida Virginia Subercaseaux, 210 Pirque.
TIP: Don’t use WAZE in Chile. It doesn’t actually work wherever in Chile and gave the longest route in comparison with Google or Apple maps.
Finest vineyards in Maipo Valley: Concha Y Toro vineyard tour and tastings
In all probability some of the well-known Chile vineyard excursions and wine producers. It’s actually a should see vineyard if you happen to’re visiting Maipo Valley, Colchagua Valley, or Santiago. The Wine Tour at Concha Y Toro we did included a tour of the grounds and wine cellar, in addition to wine tastings. It’s positively a must-do vineyard tour within the Maipo Valley wine area.
The primary wine tasting they gave us was their Sauvignon Blanc which is finished on their terrace with views of the vineyards. I’m certain the views and solar made it style higher as I don’t usually like Sauv Blanc however this was beautiful. I even purchased a bottle to go. This sauvignon blanc doesn’t style of Elderflower which some can however extra like a light-weight French chardonnay.
Don’t fear, they don’t simply do reds, in addition they do whites (Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, and Brut). In addition to a wonderful rosé wine which we stocked up on for pool aspect on the resort.
The grounds at Concha Y Toro, Chile are completely lovely! It’s like strolling by an English nation backyard, so we felt proper at house. With an ornate house, massive lake and magnolia timber overlooking their vineyards.
The opposite tastings had been performed simply exterior of their cellar. Their cellar known as the ‘Satan’s Cellar ‘and the legend is that the Satan lives in them, which was to guard the wine from thieves. Because the earthquake in 2010, all barrels are solely saved 2-3 barrels excessive. If you wish to preserve consuming, they promote a very good Sangria of their courtyard café.
Concha Y Toro is widespread worldwide and simple to get to from Santiago so one of many busier vineyards which suggests you have to e-book your Concha Y Toro Vineyard Tour upfront. We booked the 11:40 am tour figuring that allowed us to be leisurely within the morning and get 1 wine tour in earlier than lunch earlier than persevering with the drive.
Lunch en route from Santiago to Santa Cruz
Be warned, there isn’t actually wherever to eat between Concha Y Toro and Santa Cruz in addition to a service space. Your finest guess is to eat lunch on the Concha Y Toro café. I’d hoped to eat lunch at Vina El Priñcipal however nobody responded to our e mail and the guard on the gates wouldn’t allow us to in, so we resorted to the service station restaurant. Don’t do what we did!
Subsequent vineyard: You possibly can try to e-book the final tour of the day which is at 4 pm at Clos Apalta/Lapostelle however I’d suggest doing it the following day so that you’re not rushed. Lapostelle was solely an 18 minute drive if you happen to keep on the resort we did in Santa Cruz (La Perla, extra in regards to the resort later on this publish). That is one other winery that’s by reservation solely which just about appears the usual for all the vineyards right here. You’ll be able to’t simply rock up and hope they will squeeze you in. Most require that you just to do a tour and don’t supply tastings solely.
We selected to simply chill by the pool and play playing cards earlier than dinner after the drive from Santiago.
The place to eat dinner in Santa Cruz, Colchagua Valley Chile
We ate dinner on the first evening at Casa Colchagua which the resort concierge had suggest to us. It felt probably the most genuine out of the three eating places we had dinner at and the parts are large. Joyful husband and Dad! The Empanada Trio had been one of the best empanadas we had throughout our journey and the pork stomach was lean and completely cooked. Evidently we slept properly, particularly because the resort is so quiet, and perhaps attributable to somewhat wine.
Day 2: Colchagua Valley Chile Wine Tasting
The subsequent day we had two Colchagua Valley wine tour scheduled: Vina Casa Silva and Viu Manent wineries. Prior to now, we’ve performed the dashing round and doing 5 wineries a day factor and determined to be extra leisurely this time. We had been bouncing round Chile sufficient over 2 weeks and likewise wished to go away time to be spontaneous.
1. Vina Casa Silva: Conventional fashion Chilean wine tour
If you happen to’re searching for a standard Chile wine tour, this might be my high suggestion. Our day began right here at Casa Silva (your sat nav might direct you to their resort however simply preserve happening the highway somewhat additional and also you’ll discover the vineyard). Vina Casa Silva is about an hour from Santa Cruz however so well worth the drive. It was my favourite of all the wineries for a lot of causes and surprisingly, a kind of wasn’t the wine!
It’s the oldest and most conventional vineyard in Colchagua Valley and some of the lovely vineyards in Chile. Casa Silva’s recognized for its Carmeneres but in addition does white and glowing wine. The Beginner Expertise is $19.000 pp (Chilean not USD) and features a brief video historical past, a tour by cellars of the Angostura Property, and ends with a tasting of three Reserva Cuvée Colchagua wines: 2 pink & 1 white or 1 glowing wine.
Fortunately, we’d given ourselves enought time to be spontaneous which meant we had time for a scenic lunch on the terrace of Casa Silva’s Polo Membership. This has gorgeous views of the mountains and vineyards and fabulous meals (get the pulled pork sopapilla and espresso). We even stumbled throughout an genuine rodeo subsequent to the Polo area.
Actually, none of us preferred any of the wines and even the glowing however that didn’t take away from the expertise. We ended up spending about 3 hours right here in whole. Casa Silva resort could also be one other good resort choice if you happen to’d fairly be on this space.
Just a few Polo info I realized…and also you thought this was going to be all about Chilean wine:
- You want a minimum of 32 horses to play Polo
- You could play proper handed.
- Polo ponies are literally full-size horses.
Viu Manent Wine Tasting Tour Colchagua Valley
Our subsequent Chilean vineyard tour was at Viu Manent which we’d selected over others as they embrace a horseback carriage tour by their vineyards, which I believed can be romantic. In addition to a tasting of unfinished wine from their stainless-steel tanks. We deliberate the route this solution to end up on the vineyard closest to La Perla resort because it’s solely a 12 minute drive away.
The horse carriage tour wasn’t as I’d imagined as we had been crammed in with 8 different vacationers. So not fairly so romantic however nonetheless value doing. Tapping the wine within the stainless-steel tank was an attention-grabbing expertise. It wasn’t completed so we knew to anticipate it to not style good but it surely was attention-grabbing to style it by the processes earlier than ending up within the classroom for the Chilean wine tasting.
I truly actually loved doing the wine tastings in a classroom setting. One factor I bear in mind from the category is that wine with screw caps don’t final so long as these with corks comprised of one piece. I believed it was the opposite means round.
Viu Manent Chilean wines you’ll get to style
We received to strive 5 wines throughout this tour:
Viu Manent Sauvignon Blanc: That is from their secret line and 100% Sauvignon Blanc grape. I usually don’t like Sauv Blancs as they’re too floral (Elderflower) for me however the Chilean Sauvignon Blancs don’t appear to have that taste. I’m actually liking their brilliant stone fruit and citrus flavors with out being candy.
Reserve Chardonnay by Viu Manent : I preferred each of their whites and that is a straightforward consuming summer season white with no oakiness.
Viu Manent Malbec Grand Reserve 2017: I’m probably not the suitable particular person to evaluation reds. What I can inform you is that this spends 12 months on a French Oak Barrel. I used to be anticipating it to be easy but it surely appeared sharp and acidic to me.
Viu Manent ViBo Mix (Cab/Malbec): Easy and low in tannins. This one spends 18 months on oak, is fruity and never smoky. It was my favourite of their reds.
Single Winery Line Carmenere 2017 by Viu Manent: Smoky, oaky and peppery. I don’t like pepper in order quickly as there’s pepper within the tasting notes you’ve misplaced me. For others it’s a preferred taste. That’s what I like about wine, there’s one thing for everybody.
Dinner at Viu Manent restautant, Colchagua Valley
We went again to Viu Manent’s Restaurant within the night after seeing it throughout the day and having it on my checklist of the place to eat within the wine valley. It overlooks the horse paddock and vineyards however is the fallacious path for sundown. It was nonetheless completely lovely although.
The oysters had been buttery and never briny which is how we like them. The ceviche and tartare had been contemporary and flavorful particularly washed down with some extra of their Sauvignon Blanc!
Dinner and wine among the many vines at Viu Manent Vineyard, Colchagua Valley, Chile.
Day 3 Colchagua Valley wine area: Chile vineyard excursions
We spent the morning poolside on the resort with an enormous lunch and the Chilean rosé wine we’d introduced from Concha Y Toro earlier than doing the ultimate vineyard tour. The poolside bar at La Perla Lodge is the one place to eat after breakfast on the resort and doesn’t open till 2pm.
It took about an hour for lunch to be ready contemporary, so ensure you permit sufficient time if you happen to’re planning on doing a day tour or are used to consuming lunch earlier. Lunch in Chile is at all times later than we’re used to within the US and England, and usually round 2pm. With dinner being round 9pm and plenty of eating places not opening for dinner till 7.30pm. Our final vineyard tour was at Clos Apalta and Lapostelle.
Clos Apalta and Lapostelle Colchagua Valley Vineyard Tour
Clos Apalta and Lapostelle are excessive up on the hillside in a very trendy vineyard constructed to seem like a birds nest, it appears to be like like a wine barrel to me. It presents a few of the finest views of Colchagua Valley. Their vineyard spans over 5 flooring and also you get to go to all of them earlier than the tasting on the underside degree. Nicely the underside degree to the general public, there’s 2 extra flooring beneath that, which might be a personal cellar.
The tasting room is freezing so convey a blazer/cardigan and seize one of many blankets they’ve on the entrance. This was one of many dearer vineyard excursions as their wines retail for the next worth.
Clos Aplata/Lapostelle Chile wines
Lapostelle Sauvignon Blanc: My husband doesn’t like whites however he tried and preferred this! Darn it, now if I purchase a bottle I’m going to need to share. It’s much less acidic than some and tastes of pineapple with out being candy.
Lapostelle Merlot: the reds had been served too chilly right here and I couldn’t heat them up in my palms as a result of I used to be chilly however each Mr. Dawes’s preferred this one.
Restricted Launch Clos Alpalta Property Bottled 2012: Sadly this was served on the similar temperature because the white wine so we couldn’t actually respect it. It was probably the most unique and costly of the wines provided throughout the tasting however none of us preferred it. Their ideas had been it was an costly wine however didn’t style prefer it, and so they felt they might discover $10 wines for higher (RSP $129.99).
If you happen to’re searching for luxurious lodging in Colchagua Valley you possibly can keep at Clos Apalta which is a Relais and Chateau property and runs at about $900 per evening.
Finest Dinner in Santa Cruz Chile: Vino Bella restaurant
The dinner we had on our final evening within the Colchagua Valley was our greatest by far. For the sundown, setting and meals. Vino Bella is subsequent to Laura Hartwig’s vineyard and serves Italian meals to absorb all the Chilean wine you’ve been consuming.
The sundown over the winery is spectacular. A cute spot for a photograph is in the back of the restaurant terrace in entrance of the gate surrounded by pink flowers. I’m a fussy eater, my husband would in all probability say fussy interval, however the carpaccio, meatballs, Salmon, and risotto had been all improbable. If you happen to solely have 1 evening in Santa Cruz, go right here.
Different Extremely Rated Chile Vineyard Excursions in Colchagua Valley
If in case you have extra time or wish to transfer at a sooner tempo than us, take a look at these Colchagua valley wineries:
- Montgras – In addition they have a make your individual Chilean wine tour and permits picnics. They promote the picnic meals and supply glasses and blankets, and so on.
- This article has some good data on the Chilean wine path.
Finest Eating places in Colchagua Valley
Finest Place for Lunch in Colchagua Valley
The Polo Membership at Casa Silva which appears to be like like an previous ranch and is surrounded by vineyards on one aspect and the Polo area on the opposite was our favourite lunch on this space. Make a reservation as this place is basically widespread, or a minimum of it was on a Sunday after we went.
Finest Place for Dinner in Colchagua Valley
Vino Bella, Santa Cruz (see above for particulars).
Finest Colchagua Valley Resorts | The place we stayed in Santa Cruz
We selected Lodge La Perla, primarily for it’s location in Santa Cruz, Chile. It was underneath $150 per evening together with breakfast.
In addition they served my favourite breakfast of the three accommodations: The chef was a candy girl who cooked the eggs to order, not from a buffet. Even higher was the choice of freshly baked truffles for breakfast! Sure, I’m all for truffles for breakfast on trip. Particularly after they embrace chocolate and dolce de leche, plus plenty of completely different cereals, yogurts together with lactose free, fruits and juices.
Unsure how properly this follows on from meals, however on a aspect notice, in lots of locations on this space you possibly can’t flush rest room paper down the toilet!
Different Eating places near La Perla resort.
What to Pack for Colchagua Valley wine tasting and vineyard excursions
Depart your wedges and heels at house, I wore mine as soon as in 2 weeks. Follow sneakers, loafers, flats, and cute sandals as an alternative. It’s actually informal so don’t fear about packing sensible garments. Clearly add the traditional garments, sneakers, underwear, toiletries, and so on to this checklist!
- Sunscreen & hat.
- Coverup of some kind because the temperature drops at evening and the cellars might be chilly.
- Card video games (we performed Wizard at evening as there isn’t a lot of a nightlife and as one thing to do earlier than dinner).
- Convertor plug.
- Worldwide roaming information plan so you need to use your telephones maps
- Mosquito repellant.
- Mild coloured garments as mosquitoes right here go for black! As my husband realized the exhausting means!
- A bottle opener if you happen to’re planning on bringing chilean wine again to the resort for a pre dinner drink.
What’s the climate like in Colchagua Valley
One of many causes we went to Chile over Christmas and New Years was as a result of it’s their Summer season and we had been chasing the solar. The warmest time to go to Colchagua Valley is December-February when it’s round 88.4°F (31.3°C) throughout the day and 55.4°F (13°C) at evening. The newest climate.
Subsequent Should-See Locations to Go to in Chile
From the Colchagua Valley wine area we drove again to Santiago after which flew to the Patagonia Lake District in Chile which was tremendous simple. I’ve shared our flights, resort, and all the things we did within the area in this text, in addition to the tour that was 1 of our 2 finest days in Chile.
The final cease for us in Chile was San Pedro De Atacama desert which was one other large change in panorama and value making time to spend a day or 2 at. In hindsight we’d have performed the desert otherwise. So positively go by how I want we’d deliberate it versus what we did.
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