FOUNDING SPONSOR

Santa Rita’s 140-year heritage of premium winemaking has also been extended and evolved in a series of steps, an interlocked sequence that offers a complete, comprehensive portrait of a winery successfully fulfilling its long-held ideals, celebrating its achievements in winemaking, culture, gastronomy, hospitality, and sustainability. Its vineyards are in Chile’s most important regions, Maipo, Apalta, Colchagua, Leyda, Limari, Casablanca and Maule.

It's a fascinating journey: The winemaking heritage was linked with history in the late 19th Century, when Europe provided an influx of phylloxera-free vines and experienced wine-growers quickly enamoured of the terrain and climate. Viña Santa Rita was founded as the centre of an estate containing a winery, grand house and chapel and an elaborate park and during one of the crucial battles for independence, sheltered a large contingent of freedom fighters, 120 patriots, it is in honour of them that the well-known 120 brand was created. Its flagship wine, which is the icon of the Santa Rita winery, is called Santa Rita Casa Real Reserva Especial, made from 100% old-vine Cabernet Sauvignon. Santa Rita’s sister winery, Carmen was the first winery to bottle Carmènere after it was rediscovered in its vineyards by French ampelographer, Jean Michel Boursiquot. The wines of Santa Rita and Carmen have garnered many awards and its winemaker Sebastien Labbé was named one of the top 100 best winemakers of the world by the British magazine, The Drinks Business.

Within the winery is the Museo Andino, a museum of more than 3,000 pieces and exhibits from the cultures that inhabited the Andes mountains over several millennia, back to pre-Colombian times, comprising one of the most important ethnographic collections in the country.

With one of the longest coastlines in the world and a diversity of terrain and climate that is as unique as it is extraordinary, gastronomy is also an important heritage, and not in the least overlooked at Santa Rita: the Doña Paula restaurant, in the mansion that sheltered the freedom fighters, is recognized as one of the best showcases of Chile’s exuberant refined cuisine, and the Boutique Hotel Casa Real has been highlighted as one of the seven best resorts in South America by Conde Nast.

Among its multitude of awards in all these arenas are numerous accolades for Santa Rita’s Sustainability Program, especially from the National Tourism Service and the National Environmental Award from the Rycyclpolis Foundation. Perhaps the best one is in the category of “the people’s choice”—more than 140,000 people visit the winery, gardens, and hospitality centres every year.