Concha y Toro

Viña Concha y Toro S.A.

Type	Public (IPSA:CONCHATORO NYSE: VCO)
Industry	Beverage
Founded	(1883)
Headquarters	Santiago, Chile
Key people	Alfonso Larraín Santa Maria, (Chairman) Eduardo Guilisasti Gana, (CEO)
Products	Wine
Revenue	US$ 812.3 Million (2010)
Net income	US$ 9.1 Million (2010)
Website	www.conchaytoro.cl

Concha y Toro (IPSA: CONCHATORO / NYSE: VCO) is the largest producer of wines from Latin America and is one of the global leaders in its field. It is headquartered in Santiago, Chile.

Casillero del Diablo

Concha y Toro Winery is located in Chile. It comprises 8.720 ha.^[1] spread throughout Chile's major wine regions: Maipo, Maule, Rapel, Colchagua, Curico, and Casablanca.

History

Concha y Toro House, Pirque

The Concha y Toro Vineyard was founded by Don Melchor de Santiago Concha y Toro and his wife, Emiliana Subercaseaux, in 1883.^[2] To start the winery, he brought grape varieties from the Bordeaux region in France.^[2] The grapes that he brought were: Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Merlot, and Carmenère. The vineyard was incorporated as a stock company in 1923 and shares were sold in the Santiago stock market.^[2] Concha y Toro began exporting wine in March 1933 to the port of Rotterdam, Holland. In 1950, the winery began to acquire more vineyards and also began the process of adapting its business to new markets and meeting a higher demand.

In 1971, Eduardo Guilisasti Tagle became Chairman of the Board, who succeeded in expanding the company. In 1987, after partnering with U.S. importer Banfi Vintners, the company started to incorporate more advanced technology in all of its production stages. It also started using small French oak barriques. In 1994, shares of Viña Concha started trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Noble background

Not only the origins of Concha y Toro are connected to Chilean nobility and aristocracy. Nowadays the directory of the company is composed by the present Marquess of Casa Concha, a Chilean diplomat and ambassador.^[3] In 1999, the company's president Alfonso Larraín Santa María claimed the title of Marquess of Larraín in Spain. Her mother, the current Marchioness, gave Larraín the power to claim the title.^[4]

Vineyards and factories of Concha y Toro in Puente Alto, Santiago, are connected by roads with names such as Marqués de Casa Concha or Conde de la Conquista, noble titles connected to the history of the company.

Wines

Concha y Toro produces several different wine styles including a Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc made from grapes the Maule Valley. They also produce a barrel fermented Chardonnay and a single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon named after the winery's founder, Don Melchor. The wine comes from the Puente Alto Vineyard in Maipo Valley.

Grape varieties

Concha y Toro produces several varietals. White: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Gewürztraminer Red: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Carmenère

Vineyards

Some of the wine producing regions are shown here.

Maipo Valley

• Characteristics: Flatland irrigated by an Andean river.
• Vineyards: Puente Alto, Pirque, Santa Isabel
• Varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
• Wines: Don Melchor, Marqués de Casa Concha Chardonnay, Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc

Maule Valley

• Characteristics: Rich lands. Choice root stocks from the Concha y Toro nurseries.
• Vineyards: Rauco, Lontué, San Clemente, Curico
• Varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Merlot.
• Wines: Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc

Rapel Valley

• Characteristics: Broad range of varietals.
• Vineyards: Peumo, Rucahue
• Varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Merlot
• Wines: Marques de Casa Concha Merlot, Casillero del Diablo Merlot and Casillero del Diablo Carménère

Casablanca Valley

• Characteristics: Fine white varietals.
• Vineyards: El Triángulo
• Varietals: Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc
• Wines: Amelia Chardonnay, Casillero del Diablo Chardonnay, Terrunyo Sauvignon Blanc

Mendoza (Argentina)

• Characteristics: Broad range of varietals.
• Vineyards: Trivento
• Varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Torrontes, Malbec, Merlot
• Wines: Golden Reserve Malbec, Coleccion Roble Cabernet Sauvignon, Tribu Syrah

California

Concha y Toro bought the California portfolio of wines from Brown-Forman in 2011.

• Fetzer, wine
• Bonterra, wine
• Five River Wines
• Bel Arbor Wines
• Jekel Vinyards
• Coldwater Creek Wines
• Sanctuary Wines
• Little Black Dress Wines

See also

• Melchor de Concha y Toro
• Château Mouton Rothschild

References

1. ^ Concha y Toro - Annual Report - 2008
2. ^ ^{a b c} Concha y Toro - History
3. ^ Concha y Toro - Directorio. Retrieved 18 February 2010.
4. ^ BOE de 03/07/1999 - Sección V - The Spanish Official Gazette. Retrieved 18 February 2010.

External links

• http://www.conchaytorousa.com/
• http://www.conchaytoro.com/
• http://www.conchaytorofans.com/
• http://www.casillerodeldiablo.com/