If you want to find the most interesting wines in South America, head for the town of Tarija, 1,800m above sea level in southeastern Bolivia and close to the Argentinean border.

With a micro-climate similar to that of Andalusia and scenery to match any European bodega, the Tarija Valley is the gateway to Bolivia’s fledgling but growing wine-making industry.

“People say wine-making in Bolivia started 40 years ago with the introduction of modern technology, but I say it started 400 years ago when the Spanish and Jesuits Missionaries first brought grapes to Tarija,” says Sergio Prudencio, owner of Bolivia’s leading winery, La Conception . “Thanks to the soil and climate, wine has been prospering here ever since.”

A rickety bridge over the River Guadalquivir leads to the Tarija Valley, 25km from downtown Tarija. En route the road passes CENAVIT, The National Centre of Viticulture, charged with policing the quality of Bolivian wines, where resident wine-maker Candido Tolaba dreams of one day bringing local wines to the international market place.

“There’s still a long way to go with only seven commercial bodegas in Tarija and 60 in all Bolivia,” he says, patrolling the laboratory with a zealous air. “In the last ten years Bolivia has made huge strides, but we still lack the production capacity.”

There are 8,000 cultivable hectares of vines in Bolivia, compared to 200,000 hectares in Chile and 300,000 in Argentina. Bolivia currently produces around 5m litres of wine and wine-based spirit per year, 60 per cent of which from the sweet, white Muscatel de Alejandra grape, reflecting the country’s artisan tradition of producing Singani, Bolivia’s answer
to Peruvian and Chilean Pisco.

In the main square of the 12,000 person-strong village of La Conception, a clutch of colonial houses group around the bleached-white façade of the local church. The Conception winery lies along a dirt track, where an old finca, preserved since the era of the Jesuits in 1606, stands guard over the wines. While other wineries are content to cater to the domestic market, Conception owner Sergio Prudencio believes he has identified the key to the future success of Bolivian wine making – the concept of wines at altitude.

“Few of the world’s leading wine-making areas lie above 500m above sea level, but La Conception has 70 hectares spread across three altitudes between 1,750 and 2,100m, producing 200m litres or one million bottles annually,” he says, as we inspect the orderly rows of vines, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Shiraz and Muscatel.

In essence, the high altitude of the Andes region makes for a unique selling point: the higher the vineyards, the greater the level of solar radiation, hence a higher level of oxidants and a more intense concentration of aromas. La Conception is now using this marketing tool to liberally promote their varietal wines as “the highest wines in the world” in a bid to boost international sales. Currently only five per cent of stock is sold outside Bolivia with wine merchants in the US and Switzerland the first to carry La Conception brand. A bottle of Cepas de Altura quaffing wine retails for US$11 in Bolivia, while a simple Merlot can be picked up in supermarkets for £3.

“The problem is not the wine - we are confident of the quality and integrity of our wines - it’s the image of Bolivia as a wine-producing country,” says Sergio, over lunch at Gattoparado, a cosy tavern on Tarija’s sunny main square. “We are yet to breach the gap but we believe the potential of Cepas de Altura is huge,” he says, as we tuck into Filet Mignon washed down with a US$69 bottle of La conception’s Cepas de Altura Gran Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 1994, the strawberry flavour and tannins a perfect complement to the steak.

La Conception plans to open a small hotel and restaurant at the winery, while some local tour agents will arrange wine tourism trips from their offices in Tarija. Even the local tourist authorities are starting to realise the potential of wine tourism for travellers already familiar with the degustations of the Napa Valley or rural France. And, after 20 days of political upheaval cost Bolivian tourism £12m in lost revenues in June, any new tourism initiative is welcome to boost Bolivia’s 352,575 annual foreign tourist arrivals.

Meanwhile, however, the only place to soak up the ambiance of life on a Bolivian bodega is Los Parrales, a five-star hotel and spa just outside Tarija, owned by a family that made their money from the production of Singani. The rooms have great views of vine-covered hills, most lush from December to February, while guests sip a gently chilled Chardonnay from the spa’s panoramic hot tub.

After lunch Sergio smiles and offers a toast to the future of Bolivian wines. “I believe,” he says, draining his glass, “our wine industry has the potential to finally put Bolivia on the map.”

NEED TO KNOW

VTB Tours in Tarija offer a half-day wine tour for two people with a tasting for £11 per person, or enquire direct at the sales offices for the various wineries in Tarija.

Hotel Los Parrales has comfortable doubles with buffet breakfast for £65; lunch with wine
at Gattoparada (00 591 4 663 0656) costs £3.

Bolivian Ministry of Tourism and the Latin America Travel Association has more details about travelling in Bolivia

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