Four years ago, Chilean wine producer Casa Silva experimented by planting vines in Futrono, on the shore of Lake Ranco, 350 kilometres south of BíoBío – then Chile’s most southerly wine region. The Silva family planted six hectares of Sauvignon Blanc vines, along with some Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The resulting wines are showing a good level of acidity and strong fruity flavours. This combined with a low natural alcohol level indicates a huge potential for cool climate wine styles or high quality sparkling wines.

Futrono, stretches from the foothills of the Andes mountains to the shore of lake Ranco, it’s a region of indigenous vegetation with some of Chile’s most beautiful natural scenery.  As the climate and weather variation is dramatically different to that of the Silva’s traditional Colchagua home, it means that although a strong harvest is not expected every year, good years could prove very interesting.

Mario Pablo Silva, managing director of the family-run business, explained the decision to plant at Ranco, “We are always looking to broaden our horizons and lead the way for Chilean winemakers, and this represented the ideal opportunity. With the family having owned an estate down here for years, we always wondered about the possibility of planting vines.

“It is a groundbreaking vineyard, in a wild natural area where nobody has ever dared to plant vines before.Planting in a different climate should produce new and interesting wines, further extending Chile’s reputation as one of the finest and most diverse wine producing nations”.

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September 2011