Limarí Valley
Limarí Valley belongs to the Coquimbo vine-growing Region located between 29°20´and 32°15´latitude south and includes three rivers, the Elqui, Limarí and Choapa rivers. All rivers are born in the Andes range mountain flowing to the sea and giving their names to the three wine growing valleys: the Elqui Valley, the Limarí Valley and the Choapa Valley.
The Coquimbo vine-growing Region overlaps the homonymous fourth administrative region of the Republic of Chile. It is located between 29° 20´and 32° 15´latitude south and includes the Elqui Valley, the Limarí Valley and the Choapa Valley. The Coquimbo region has three rivers, Elqui, Limarí and Choapa; all of them are born in the Andes range mountain and flow to the sea and give their name to the three wine growing Valleys. The Elqui River has a mixed flow pattern. Its main tributaries, during the thaw period, are the Turbio and Claro Rivers. Its waters are used for the irrigation of the Elqui valley and in the main cities of the region, La Serena, Coquimbo and Vicuña. In the central part of the region we find the Limarí River which has several tributaries, among them the Hurtado, Grande and Huatulame Rivers. The Recoleta, La Paloma and Cogotí reservoirs accumulate the waters of the Limarí. Then, we find the Choapa River located towards the south of the region, which has the Tocornal and Illapel rivers as main tributaries.
Denomination of Origin: Limarí Valley
Region: Coquimbo
Sub-Region: Limarí
Complementary Areas: Costa, Entre-Cordilleras, Andes
Soils
The main feature of this region is the presence of three important transversal valleys that from north to south are known as the Elqui, Limarí and Choapa valleys. The Andes in this region is high and massive, with a peak of 6,252 metres (Mount Olivares). However, heights diminish towards the south, and peaks between 3,000 and 4,000 metres predominate. At the same time, the Andes are deflected to the west, getting nearer to the coast. The narrowest zone of the Chilean territory occurs at the latitude of Illapel: a width of 95 kilometres only between the coast and the highest peaks of the Andes. In the western slope of the mountain range and from north to south, the relief is very uneven due the presence of chains or mountainous highlands, which stem from the Andean range and alternate with transversal valleys. There are also transversal mountain chains coming down from the Andes to the seafront plains. The average altitude of these chains varies between 600 and 1,200 metres. Their reliefs are oriented from west to east and the valleys of the Elqui, Limarí and Choapa rivers separate them. The Elqui River valley is one of the widest and longest of the North; it is located towards the north of the region and joins the seafront plains, which continue inland where we find the city of La Serena. In the central sector of the region we find the Limarí River valley, this valley is narrow, with very steep slopes and ends in seafront plains. Then, to the south, we find the narrowest valley: that of the Choapa River. In its middle section, it forms a canyon and later, at the mouth of the river, there is a sector of wide river terraces.
Climate
The Coquimbo viticultural region has several climates: the foggy seafront steppe, the cloudy hot steppe and temperate cold highlands climate. This region is a transition between the desert zones and temperate Mediterranean climate zones. Along the whole coast the seafront steppe or cloudy climate predominates. Its influence reaches up to 40 kilometres inland, through the transversal valleys and gorges that cross the region. Its main characteristic is abundant mists, high humidity, mild temperatures, a mean annual rainfall of 130 mm and a dry period of eight to nine months. Inland, and at altitudes of over 800 metres, there is a hot steppe climate, characterised by the dryness of the air. Here temperatures are higher than on the coast, precipitation is not so abundant and drought periods are usual. In the Andes above an altitude of 3,000 metres, there is a temperate cold mountain climate. Its characteristics are: high precipitation, low temperatures and permanent snows which, through water courses and the system of groundwater tables, maintain a significant stock of water during the dry summer period, and supply the agriculture of the region.