The 2020 harvest in the southern hemisphere will undoubtedly be remembered for its complexity and short duration. Thanks to excellent management both in the vineyards and in the wineries, we are certain that the Santa Carolina wines of this vintage will continue to maintain the quality that represents us.

According to the report delivered by the National Association of Agricultural Engineers-Enologists of Chile, this season was faced with several weather-related difficulties: an intense drought during the winter in most of the valleys, frosts during the budbreak and higher than normal temperatures in the final months of the year. All this resulted in yields below the historical average and an early start to the harvest of up to four weeks for some varieties. Finally, the high temperatures of March and the arrival of coronavirus in our country forced us to start the harvests earlier and finish them about a month earlier than in a normal year.

The report concludes that, although it was atypical, the 2019-2020 season was good and the challenges were overcome. The conditions that marked this season led to wines of good concentration and demonstrated the ability of producers to adapt to a pandemic scenario that put the wine industry to a new test, as it was perhaps one of the shortest harvests in recent history.

Andrés Caballero, Chief Winemaker at Santa Carolina agrees with this notion. “This has been an exceptional harvest in terms of timing and harvesting methods. For the same reason, we are expecting wines to be equally exceptional: Powerful, brimming with fruity notes and enhanced complexity. “We are satisfied with this harvest,” he added. “We wrapped it up it a month in advance and managed to do everything we needed to. In terms of kilos of fruit produced, the yield was quite similar to last year.”