Viña Carmen was the very first winery in Chile and is one of Chile’s most recognized wineries. It was founded by Christian Lanz in 1850 and named in honour of his wife Carmen. Viña Carmen’s chief winemaker Emily Faulconer was recently listed as one of the ‘100 Best Winemakers in the World’ by The Drinks Business and is the talent behind their award-winning sustainable wines.
Making History
Now with more than 160 years of history, Viña Carmen has dedicated its essence to bringing premium Chilean wine to the global stage. It was also the first winery to bottle Carmenere and bring this historic grape to reality by discovering it was not Merlot in 1994. The rediscovery of Carmenere in one of the Carmen vineyards, specifically in the Alto Maipo Valley after the grape was long thought to be extinct, was a landmark event that brought Carmenere back to the world stage of fine wine. They were the first winery to create and sell Carmenere in 1996. Viña Carmen was also the very first winery in Chile to create an organic and sustainable line of wines in 1994 and currently produces wine from Maipo Valley, Leyda Valley, Casablanca Valley, Colchagua Valley and Apalta Valley.
Carmen’s Road to Success
Crediting her mother for getting her into the wine trade, Faulconer claims it was a bit of a random choice. Her mother suggested she become a winemaker. “She pushed me into doing something different, something fun,” says Faulconer. The winemaker grew up in the Araucania region in Chile, which is not a winemaking region.
Faulconer studied Agricultural Engineering at the Universidad Católica de Chile. Her passion for what she does has led her, among other things, to live for a year and a half in the Elqui Valley, leading the planning, operation, and execution of the viticulture and oenological work of Viñedos Alcohuaz. She has also gained experience by working in wineries around the world such as Cakebread Cellars in California, Trinity Hill Winery in New Zealand and Chateau Canon in France. Bringing her international expertise back to Chile, she has also previously worked as Chief Winemaker in Viña Arboleda, leading the viticulture and winemaking areas, focusing on the production of fine wines with a sense of origin. Prior to this, she worked as an assistant winemaker in Maquis and Viu Manent, both located in the Colchagua Valley.
Today she is excited about the future of Chilean wine,
“Chilean wine today is exciting, fun, diverse, with a sense of origin, and geographic identity. We have wines from the desert, from Patagonia, from the Andes, and from the Pacific Ocean. What other country has all of this… only us,” explains Faulconer.
She is also responsible for the continuation and strengthening of internationally acclaimed innovative projects that Viña Carmen has launched recently, which have led it to position itself as one of the most innovative wineries in the country, acclaimed both nationally and internationally.
Committed to Sustainability
Focusing on sustainability Faulconer and the team at Viña Carmen are committed to sustainable practices. “As a country, we are very focused on sustainability, and I think the future of Chilean wine is in the precision put into a sustainable way of producing. This will result in us ensuring a production for the future, but also wines of real identity,” explains Faulconer.
Viña Carmen has created a plan focusing on five of her sustainable priorities which include environmental, suppliers, innovation, communities and workers and their families. The team develops projects for improving the level of sustainability practices from vineyards and cellars to commercialization and suppliers, as well as employees and communities.
“Sustainability is not only about the environment. In fact, The social pillar of sustainability is one of the most important for Santa Rita Estates. We are convinced that sustainable growth will only occur to the extent that we put people at the center of our work, thus achieving a harmonious coexistence between wine production, environmental conservation and the well-being of current and future generations.” she shares.
Viña Carmen vineyards are implemented with a biodiversity conservation plan. In 2022, the winery used 95% recycling at its main Buin Plant in Alto Jahuel. They have efficient use of non-renewable energies and use of renewable energies in both their cellars and vineyards. 92% of the glass bottles that are used are Ecoglass and they have also embarked on Science Based Targets initiatives for Carbon Footprint calculation. This project has allowed the winery to measure its Carbon Footprint and has also set up emissions reduction targets for each and every year. While doing this, the winery is able to develop different projects and programs in order to reduce our Carbon emissions through different practices (Renewable Energy, Land Management, Packaging, etc).
When asked what truly changed her life she says living in the mountains of Alcohuaz. “I once lived in the mountains of Alcohuaz on my own. It was a great time in my life. I was in charge of the highest vineyards in Chile, living in a small house by the vineyard, with no internet, and pure contact with nature. I was very happy, knowing to be alone is important for the soul.”
She shares that she travels to Jerez and Jura because they are the cradle of biologically aged wines and we have been exploring this type of wine aging for five years, the Rhône valley because she absolutely adores the wines, especially from Cornas and Cote Rotie and Japan because of the gastronomy and culture, that is characterized by hard work, politeness and social harmony.
Aside from making award-winning wine, Faulconer loves to run and garden. “I like pairing Carmenere with many things. But a special match is porcini risotto, cooked with the homemade vegetable stock that I make from my kitchen garden.” She shares with us that the most extraordinary wine and food pairing she ever had was, she mentioned Sea urchin with vin jaune.
Viña Carmen Wines Now available at LCBO and across Canada
