Beyond the Usual Bottles is our introductory series on the wine regions that do not get the airtime they deserve. Each class focuses on a single county or region, walks through the grapes and styles worth knowing, and covers what makes the place distinct.
No background required. Come curious.
Chile runs nearly three thousand miles top to bottom, with the Pacific on one side and the Andes on the other. That geography gives it something almost no other wine country has: a long list of distinct growing zones packed into a single, easy-to-read map. Cool coastal valleys, warm interior sites, and high-altitude vineyards pushing into the foothills. Even old-vine plantings in the south that predate most of what California considers old.
We taste across the country from north to south and cover what makes each region tick. Expect a few familiar names done better than their reputation suggests, and a few bottles that will reset what you thought Chilean wine could be.