When we come to analyze the Maipo Valley, that sums
9450 hectares of vineyards altogether, we are plunging
headlong into the “Andes”, “Inter Andes-Pacific”
and “Pacific” scheme that we have already summarized,
and will explain more thoroughly below, in order
to give a somewhat better understanding of the geographical
reality of the wine-production in Chile. In this
valley, the characteristics of a “fronton” or wall,
which we have assigned to the Andes, are evidently
present, plus broad extensions of Inter Andes-Pacific
conditions and also significant expressions of the
interior face of the Coastal Range, which we have
defined as Pacific.
In this important region, it should be pointed out
that the Andes sector, because of its altitude and
exposure to the sun, is cooler than the Inter Andes-Pacific
sector, and obviously than the Pacific sector, where
the “rebound” of the maritime influence is paradoxically
further away because of the existence of the Coastal
Range, which produces an influence known as the
“shadow effect”. (it is worth mentioning that the
western slope of this range is unsuitable for vine-growing
throughout the whole country, except for a few insignificant
exceptions). In other words, facing directly towards
the Pacific, without a “filter” of mountains in
between, the vine hardly prospers.
In order to have a better understanding of this
phenomenon, one has considered that the fresh, humidity-laden
winds blowing in from the coast create mists and
low sun-exposure when they meet the Coastal Range
(as occurs in Casablanca). Then, as they cross that
range, they fall into the central valley where they
experience a noticeable increase in temperature.
Continuing their course eastwards, they come up
against the Andes Range, rise once again and the
condensation effect is repeated, producing a considerable
drop in temperature.
In the Andes sector of the valley, some of the most
important areas for wine production are Macul (Penalolen),
Pirque and Alto Jahuel. The Inter Andes-pacific
sector is clearly represented by Isla de Maipo,
Talagante and Calera de Tango, and the Pacific sector
corresponds to the valleys
set among the mountains of the Coastal Range.
Characteristic of the whole region is its Mediterranean
climate, with rainfall of between 300 and 350 mm
per year, depending on the sector. In any case,
rains are concentrated in winter and early spring.
The Valley is watered by the Maipo River and its
tributary, the Mapocho. The former of these, aided
by the damming of the Yeso River, another of its
tributaries, means that irrigation is completely
assured. The Maipo is a river that rises in the
Andes, fed by a mixture of source: winter rains
and spring and summer thaws. Its source is in the
high peaks of the central Andes, all over five thousand
meters of altitude.
This is the most commonly exploited region for obtaining
wines from the Cabernet sauvignon grape variety.
These achieve a characteristic and distinguishable
hall-mark, depending on where they were produced
on the east-to-west sub-divisions that we have described.
In addition to the Cabernet Sauvignon grape variety
(5396 hectares), there are significant quantities
of production of other red varieties, such as Merlot
(1145 hectares), Carménère (381 hectares), Syrah
(240 hectares), Cabernet Franc (101 hectares), and
among the whites, Chardonnay (977 hectares) and
Sauvignon Blanc (388 hectares). In other words,
all the main grape varieties that make up the select
repertoire currently available in Chile are grown
in this region.
This valley is the cradle of almost all the main
traditional Chilean vineyards, because here they
have their central wine cellar, which have been
kept almost intact since they were built in the
19th century. These constitute an interesting architectural
contribution typical of that century. From a historical
point of view, it is worth mentioning that the area
covered by the present city of Santiago was the
cradle of the first vineyard plantings at the time
of the Spanish Conquest and the early colonial period,
with a progressive, sustainable growth up to our
days. However, the intensive development of the
cit has made it necessary to move the planting of
new vineyards further away from the city center.
In fact, several well-known vineyards, whose trademarks
are still in existence, are now covered by urban
sprawl, resulting in an incalculable and unfortunately
irreversible loss.
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