Viña Santa Ema (Casa Ema)

The winery

The story of Santa Ema begins with Pedro Pavone Voglino, an immigrant from Rivalta, in Italy's Piedmont, who arrived in Chile in 1917 and settled in the Maipo area. In 1931 the family bought the 35-hectare Santa Ema farm in Isla de Maipo, and in 1956 his son Félix Pavone Arbea founded the winery. Exports began in 1986, to Brazil, and according to the winery they now reach more than 30 countries. The company remains in family hands, with the third and fourth generations.

The winery lists three estates of its own: El Peral, 45 hectares on the banks of the Maipo River in Isla de Maipo; Cerro Blanco, 112 hectares at about 1,000 meters above sea level in Pirque, source of the grapes for its top-tier wines; and Leyda, 40 hectares 10 kilometers from the Pacific, for cool-climate whites and reds. El Peral is home to the winemaking cellar, built in 2003, a building with reddish walls and 105 stainless-steel tanks. Final blending, bottling and the hall holding more than 3,700 barrels are at the plant on Calle Izaga, about 3 kilometers away, which the published tour does not include. The winemaker is Rodrigo Blázquez, since 2006. The range runs from Select Terroir and Gran Reserva, where the house highlights its Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, to the 4° Elemento and Amplus lines and the icon wines Catalina, Félix and Rivalta, the last a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carménère and Cabernet Franc. It also makes sparkling wines and a Late Harvest. Since 2023 it has been bringing regenerative farming practices into its vineyards.

Visits take place at Casa Ema, the winery's visitor space at Balmaceda 1950, about 45 minutes from Santiago and next to the El Peral cellar. Guided tours take in the variety garden, a soil pit where the terroir is explained, and the winemaking cellar, and end with four glasses and a board of nuts, cheeses and charcuterie; the wine selection changes with the tour. There are also short three-glass tastings with no tour, and an experience with a three-course paired lunch. Book online or by WhatsApp at +56 9 6241 5913; the website lists opening hours of Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 18:00 and Sunday 10:00 to 17:00. The restaurant opens daily from 12:30, with a three-course set menu on weekdays and an à la carte menu on weekends; there is also a café and a wine shop. The winery notes access ramps for wheelchairs and strollers. Its wines can also be bought in its online store, which sells mainly by the case of six bottles.