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By Marc Killinger

Cousiño-Macul has a candlelit cellar constructed 150 years ago in a traditional cal y canto (mortar and stone) style by a French architect. TerraMater sports huge stainless-steel tanks open to the sun with a striking view of vineyards and the majestic Andes mountain range just beyond. These are just two of Chile's more than 90 wineries, and most, in their own way, are available for discovery by international visitors.

Visiting wineries in central Chile is becoming an increasingly popular tourist activity, especially now that Chile has firmly established itself in northern hemispheric countries as a top wine producer. Four longtime wineries in and near Santiago, Concha y Toro, Cousiño-Macul, Santa Rita and Undurraga, as well as several that are farther afield from the capital, are fully equipped to receive groups of visitors. Dozens more are constructing facilities and hiring staff as they become aware of the potential for wine tourism.

So although most Chilean wineries are just beginning to understand how opening to visitors can contribute to their business, visiting one of the smaller wineries can be a true pleasure. Once there, you'll find cordiality and friendliness, genuine interest among the staff in showing off the facility and, often, the winemaker on hand to answer questions. Plus, such visits afford the opportunity to taste the many delicious Chilean wines that aren't exported. The quality of even relatively inexpensive wines is consistently good, and they're a delight to sample "in the field."

Nonetheless, actually finding all but the largest Chilean wineries, especially if you don't speak Spanish, is pretty difficult. The Chile Information Project is editing a guide to visiting Chile's wineries and designing a companion website, both of which will be available later this year, but there is currently no list of Chilean wineries packaged for the visiting wine enthusiast.

However, CHIP offers specialized one- and two-day tours of traditional and boutique wineries with a native English speaker who has years of experience in the wine business. In addition, there are a number of Santiago tour agencies, whose fliers are available in most hotels, that offer winery tours, almost exclusively, however, to Cousiño-Macul in the eastern Santiago borough of Peñalolen and to Concha y Toro, the country's largest winery, in the southeastern suburb of Pirque. Both wineries can also be visited on your own with advance reservations and are accessible using a combination of subway, bus and taxi.

Two other historic wineries fairly near the capital that have regular tours and tastings are Santa Rita, about 30 minutes south of Santiago, and Undurraga, an hour southwest. It's possible but quite complicated to reach them by public transportation, so a tour, taxi or a rental car is recommended.

Santa Rita is built around a colonial home where 120 independence fighters are said to have taken shelter in the early 1800s, hence the winery's "120" brand name. It has a popular, underground restaurant. Undurraga, in semi-rural Talagante, dates from the same era. A century later it was the first Chilean winery to export to Europe and the United States, and its wines continue to be widely available around the world.

There are two established Rutas de Vino (wine routes) in Chile.

The more developed one is in the Colchagua Valley west of the small city of San Fernando, about 150 km south of Santiago. This beautiful, quiet valley spreads along the Tinguiririca River between the Andes and the low coastal range. The dozen boutique wineries participating in the effort are marked with matching blue signs on the main road west, and the Ruta office in the sleepy town of Santa Cruz offers half- and full-day tours. The latter feature visits to two wineries, including wine tastings, lunch and a stop at either the local historical and archaeological museum or a stately old hacienda. Guides speak English. Contact the Ruta by phone at (56 72) 823199 or email at rutadelvino@chilevinos.cl

The Maule Valley Ruta de Vino, based in the town of San Javier, is 300 km south of the capital. This new organization has posted special road signs to 10 wineries in this important, cooler viticultural area, a brochure with map is available and tours are offered. Two of the wineries, Domaine Oriental and Balduzzi, are open to visits without advance notice, and two others, Tabontinaje and Segu, only require a phone call. For more information on this wine route, call or fax (56 73) 323657, email wineroute@entelchile.cl or write to

Sargento Aldea 2491, San Javier, Chile.

For specialized tours of traditional and boutique wineries organized by the Chile Information Project, call (562) 777-5376, email info@chiptravel.cl or see www.chip.cl

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