Firm Creation, Firm Evolution and Clusters in Chile’s Dynamic Wine Sector: Evidence from the Colchagua and Casablanca Regions

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cellar hygiene, making white wines reductively, gentle pressing, and temperature-
controlled fermentations proved influential (Richards, 2006: 31). These processes became
widely disseminated through the 1980s and 1990s so that the 1990s can be seen as the
decade of significant change in the sector. According to Lapostol (2008), the need to
delay the fermentation in order for it to be slow, especially for white wines, was one of
the more important inventions, particularly for wines with aromas.

For Cox (2008) the most significant changes have been in terms of Colchagua’s two new
wines, Syrah and Carmenère, on its Luis Felipe Edwards estate near Nancagua. Cox has
planted Syrah on a range of 800 hectares of hilly land in their property in Colchagua,
broadly similar to those in the Rhone valley, and later deciding to store it in oak barrels.
Meanwhile, Carmenère, which has become the signature grape of Chile, does well on the
more granitic and more fertile soils at the base of the hills and near to the company’s
cellar. Meanwhile, the traditional survivor, Cabernet Sauvignon, does well in both lower
hills and plains as well. This was one of the most formidable new innovations in the
Colchagua valley that I was able to see.

Grape quality has also been improved in wineries in both Colchagua and Casablanca
using a vast range of new technologies. As much as 70 per cent of money spent on
innovation in Colchagua has been spent on acquiring new machinery for the vinification
process (Olavarria et al, 2008). An example in Casablanca valley is GPS (Global
Positioning System) being used by Montes, Montgras and Casas del Bosque winery to
work out the order in which grapes in the vineyard should be harvested.

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