Ayllu

The winery

Ayllu, a word that means “community” in Kunza, is the collective label of the Cooperativa de Viñateros de Altura Lickanantay, a cooperative that brings together Atacameño families from Toconao, Socaire, Celeste and San Pedro de Atacama. The work began in the late 2000s with SQM's Atacama Tierra Fértil program and support from INDAP (the national agricultural development agency), the regional agriculture ministry office (Seremi de Agricultura) and the Municipality of San Pedro de Atacama. The growers revived the tradition of the oasis's old criollo pergola vines (parrones) of País and Moscatel de Alejandría, and gradually added varieties such as Malbec, Syrah, Petit Verdot, Chardonnay and Cabernet Franc. Today they make between 12,000 and 15,000 bottles a year at their winery in Toconao, right on the edge of the Salar de Atacama salt flat.

The vineyards sit between roughly 2,400 and 3,200 meters above sea level, on ancient sandy soils rich in volcanic rock, with sun almost all year and cold nights. The grapes are picked by hand, at night or before dawn, so that they reach the winery cold, and the reds are harvested in February, far earlier than in the rest of Chile. The Ayllu line has an Ensamblaje Blanco (white blend) of Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc with a brief spell in barrel, a Rosé of Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc, a Naranjo, an orange wine of Moscatel de Alejandría and Moscatel Rosada aged in clay amphorae and steel, and an Ensamblaje Tinto (red blend) of Malbec, País and Syrah. The Haalar line adds the Etiqueta Negra, a Syrah with Malbec and Cabernet Franc kept in amphora, and the Etiqueta Blanca, a red of Petit Verdot, Syrah and Malbec. In 2020 its Catchir, a late-harvest Moscatel, won a gold medal at the Catad'Or competition.

The winery, on Calle Volcán Láscar in Toconao, receives visitors every day with a booking. The Tour Ayllu lasts an hour: it goes through the winery, explains how wine is made in such an extreme climate and ends with a tasting of three wines. The Tour Haalar, an hour and a half long, adds a walk through the vineyards and a guided tasting of four wines. Groups are small and are booked through the winery's online shop or by WhatsApp. The producer has also offered walks with llamas as an add-on to the visit; ask about it when you book. There is no restaurant or accommodation; the wines are sold at the winery and in the online shop.