Chilean wine from conquest to export

Vines arrived with the Spanish in the sixteenth century, largely to supply the Mass, and the País variety planted then is still grown.

The transformation came in the nineteenth century. Wealthy Chilean landowners imported Bordeaux varieties and, in many cases, Bordeaux winemakers, before phylloxera reached Europe — which is why Chile holds pre-phylloxera Bordeaux material.

The twentieth century was largely inward-looking, with land reform, political upheaval and an domestic market for inexpensive wine.

Export-focused modernisation began in the late 1980s with foreign investment and new equipment, and Chile became a major exporter within two decades.

The most recent phase has been geographic: moving out of the warm Central Valley into coastal and southern regions, and formalising an east–west classification that recognises the difference between coastal, Andean and valley-floor sites.