Central Valley
Central Valley is one of the six winegrowing regions of Chile identified as such according to the Agricultural Decree Law nº 464 of December 14, 1994, establishing the viticultural zoning of the country and setting the norms for its use as D.O. (Denominations of Origin). Chilean wines with this appellation of origin must be made with at least 75% of grapes coming from within the region.
The Central Valley is one of the six winegrowing regions of Chile officially identified as such according to the Decree of Agriculture nº 464 of December 14, 1994, that establishes the viticultural zoning of the country and sets the norms for its use like D.O. (Denominations of Origin). Chilean wines with this appellation of origin must be made with at least 75% of grapes coming from within the region.
The wine-growing region of the Central Valley extends from the administrative province of Chacabuco in the Metropolitan Region of Santiago to the administrative provinces of Cauquenes and Linares in the Maule Region. This wine-growing region has four wine-growing subregions: The Maipo Valley, the Rapel Valley (comprises the Cachapoal and the Colchagua Valleys), the Curicó Valley and the Maule Valley.
Soils
The western slope of the Coastal Range has well-developed soils that evolved from granitic rocks and have clay content in depth. In the sector neighbouring the coast the soils derive from high marine terraces, they are reddish-brown in colour and their relief is flat or softly sloping. In the western slopes of the Coastal Range, soils originate from granitic rocks and have high clay content in depth. Alluvial soils of moderate development are found in the zone of the Central Valley, set between the Coastal Range and the Andes. Most of the irrigated agricultural lands of the Rapel viticultural region have this type of soil. In the precordillera and the sectors of stronger relief of the Andes there are coarse-grained soils derived from volcanic accumulation. The Rapel River and its main affluents, the Cachapoal and Tinguiririca Rivers, constitute the hydrographic system of the Rapel valley. Both rivers meet in the sector called La Junta and feed the Rapel reservoir.
Climate
The Rapel valley region is characterised by a temperate climate with large differences between the coast and its inland valleys. The orographic conditions of the region do not allow sea winds to enter the sunken basin; this causes a wide thermal range, differentiating it from the coast where sea fogs are present during practically the whole year. The difference between the coast and the sunken basin is significant, and shows in the humidity, thermal oscillation and high mean rainfall at some times of the year.