If you know Chile, you know we make great wine -and Pisco, and beer, and gin (true fact, not bragging!). If you are a wine drinker, and are familiar with production culture, you might have also heard of the term “vendimia”. Vendimia, according to Google translate, means vintage, or harvest, which is true in strict terms. However, in Spanish, vendimia is a celebration that occurs at the end of the harvest, and more often than not, the industry refers both to the harvest process as well as the vintage (the year the wine was produced), as cosecha. Also, I didn’t say this to be snobby! Knowing this helps you out when reading bottle labels.
Now, I said a vendimia is a celebration. However, particularly over the last 20-30 years, the more accurate terms would be festival, or even party. Traditionally, it is a celebration of the end of the labour-intensive agricultural process, including the harvest. A closing of the growth season, and beginning of the fall, which for winemakers will mean pruning and waiting for regrowth. If this has you thinking of the grape-stomping party scene from A Walk in the Clouds, let me disabuse you of the notion straight away. There is no foot-fungus grape juice involved. At least none that turns into the wine any of us will eventually drink, and vendimias have largely lost that small community party vibe, and are more of an industry event.
Vendimias are big parties or festivals that are held by either single wineries, groups of wineries, regional representatives -a municipality celebrating their entire territory’s production, and even universities with Agronomy courses (and therefore vineyards). Of course, the most headache inducing versions are the college parties. However, all other instances are family-friendly. Single-vineyard celebrations, will include some games and activities (you might even find a grape filled barrel or two to stomp in), but most collective vendimias include tastings, food, live acts (usually music and comedy), as well as something for the kids. Vendimias are not as popular or as widely attended as our Independence celebrations in September, and that is because, far from being a community event, they are a way for wineries -big and small- to come together, feature their products, and particularly for the smaller ones, make themselves known to a larger customer base.
If you are a wine connoisseur and want to learn more about Chilean wines and wineries, attending vendimias is a fantastic option! You get to see, and taste, wines from all over a specific area, and with that first-hand knowledge arrange tours of your favourites. Vendimias are usually scheduled on weekends from late March to early May. You can always check out this calendar for the season’s activities. If you don’t feel like arranging your own winery visits, transport and lunch, etc. We’ll be happy to do it for you. All our tours can be tailored to your requirements, so if you book a wine tour with us and state which wineries you want to visit, we’ll arrange those for you (as long as the wineries confirm availability). Here are some photos of one of this year’s vendimias. Hope you get to join us in 2026!!
