Four partners, one conviction: How Montes redefined Chile's wine landscape
When Aurelio Montes, Douglas Murray, Alfredo Vidaurre, and Pedro Grand founded Viña Montes together in 1987, their ambition was as clear as it was ambitious: to produce wines at a level that simply did not exist in Chile until then. Founded in 1987, the winery exported from the beginning, becoming the first Chilean winery to place a truly premium-capable Cabernet Sauvignon on the world market. Aurelio Montes, a trained oenologist and the driving force behind the project, had explored the Colchagua Valley in his youth and was fascinated by the then-barren landscape of Apalta – a patch of earth whose name in Spanish simply means "poor soils." It was there, on alluvial sandy loam soils and granite flanks of steep mountain slopes, that he laid the foundation for what defines Montes today. In the meantime, Aurelio Montes Jr., who studied oenology at the Catholic University of Chile, leads the cellar team – the generational change took place without a break in philosophy.
Steep slopes, Gregorian chant, and consistent sustainability
Montes was the first winery in Chile to plant Syrah and was among the first to consistently rely on slopes in Apalta – at a time when the entire industry worked exclusively on flat valley floors. The winery in Apalta, completed in 2004, is designed according to Feng Shui principles; in the barrel cellar, Gregorian chant is intended to accompany the maturation of the wines. This is not a marketing gimmick, but part of a comprehensive approach where details count. In the vineyards, Montes pursues a dry-farming principle: irrigation only occurs when natural rain falls below the minimum, which reduces water consumption by up to 65% – the savings correspond to the annual consumption of around 20,000 households. This is supplemented by regenerative agriculture, which improves soil health, biodiversity, and water efficiency, as well as a herd of over 350 grazing animals that support vegetation management in a natural way. In 2024, Montes received B-Corp certification – an award that requires ethical corporate governance and measurable ecological added value. In addition, the winery holds the Wines of Chile sustainability certification and has been recognized as one of the ten most sustainable agricultural businesses in Latin America.
From the Alpha label to the vineyards of the Andes: What distinguishes Montes wines
The portfolio ranges from the accessible Alpha series – Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay from dry-farmed Colchagua sites – to the so-called Icon Wines like the Alpha M, a Bordeaux blend from Apalta that has been one of Chile's most highly regarded red wines since its first bottling in 1996, and the Folly, a 100 percent Syrah from slopes with up to 45-degree inclines. The wines reflect the Mediterranean climate of the Colchagua Valley: long growing season due to cool Pacific winds, concentrated fruit due to targeted yield restriction, and pronounced structure due to steep-slope cultivation on granite and slate. Aging in French oak, with a high proportion of new wood and long maturation times for the premium lines, gives the wines depth without masking their origin. Montes now exports to over 100 countries – what began as a Chilean project without foreign capital or external consulting has become one of the most famous wine names in South America.
