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Chilean Wines
Despite links to Spain, Chile's wine has mainly been influenced
by French winemaking, in particular the Bordeaux region. Shortly
before to the French phylloxera epidemic, big Chilean landowners
visited France and some large French vineyards and were so impressed
they began importing French vines to plant on theit land in
Chile.Upon the outbreak of phylloxera in France, the new Chilean
vineyards took advantage and the Chilean wine industry was born
and began to export. Many ruined French winemakers emigrated
to South America, taking their experience and refined techniques
to South American vineyards, including Chile..
Now, over twenty varieties of grape are grown in Chile with
many wineries increasing output and improving the quality every
year. Pais has been the most widely planted vine, but other
red wine varieties include Merlot, Carménère,
Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Cabernet franc, Pinot noir, Syrah,
Sangiovese, Barbera, Malbec, and Carignan with white wine varieties
including Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, Sauvignon vert, Sémillon,
Riesling, Viognier, Torontel, Pedro Ximénez, Gewürztraminer
and Muscat of Alexandria.
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