San Juan is located in the west-central part of Argentina.
San Juan’s wine-producing region is bordered by the provinces of Mendoza, La Rioja, San Luis, and Catamarca. To the west is the Andean mountain range, which includes Mount Aconcagua, the highest peak in all of South America at 22,841 ft (6,962 m). The Ríos Grande de San Juan and Jachal Rivers feed this desert oasis that receives only 7 inches (18 cm) of rain a year. Though San Juan gets much less rainfall than neighboring Mendoza—which averages 14 inches (35 cm)—this province has deep waterways flowing through it and a large underground water supply.
The soil here is mostly river sediment with some silt loam in areas near sandy plains and some fine clay near rocky slopes. The soil is typically low in organic matter but high in nutrients.
Famous for its hot and dry climate, San Juan produces a lot of wine from limited water resources.
- Although San Juan is a desert, it produces more wine than any other region in Argentina.
- It’s the second most populated province in Argentina and only accounts for 2% of all the land in the country.
- The climate is hot and dry, but limited water resources are used to irrigate vineyards.
San Juan was settled in 1562 by Spanish explorers.
San Juan is the oldest of Argentina’s major wine regions, and was first settled by Spanish explorers in 1562. The wine industry was first established in the nineteenth century by European immigrants who flocked to the region. San Juan doesn’t have as large or diverse an immigrant population as Mendoza, but it’s still home to many settlers from Spain and Italy.
Though San Juan’s wine industry is now mostly owned by locals, it has remained financially independent from local governments since its founding. This has allowed winemakers in San Juan more freedom to experiment with new grape varietals and methods for cultivating their grapes than those in other regions.
Main grape variety in San Juan: Syrah.
Syrah is the main grape variety grown in San Juan. It grows well in these hot, dry conditions and produces a wine that is full-bodied, intense and complex, with flavors of blackberry and cherry. This grape is popular all around the world, both under its original name Syrah and as Shiraz (the name given to it by Australian winemakers). In addition to Syrah, San Juan also produces wines from many international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec, along with several local grapes including Criolla Grande.
Most important appellation in San Juan: Perdition Valley
Famous for producing wines from grapes that are not common in Argentina, Perdition Valley is located in the south of San Juan, its shape resembling a triangle. The valley’s hot and dry climate has greatly contributed to its fame.
Famous wines from the Perdition Valley appellation are from Bodega Finca Las Moras.
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The Perdition Valley’s terroir plus Bodega Finca Las Moras’ skills produce intense and complex wines full of fruit flavors like blackberry and cherry.
The word terroir may not be in your lexicon, but it should be. It’s a French term that describes how the climate of a given region, the slope of its hills and valleys, the soil composition, and other factors affect the taste of wine. If you’ve ever sipped a Cabernet from Napa Valley and thought it tasted different than one that’s grown in Washington State or Chile—no matter if they were both produced by the same winemaker—you have terroir to thank for that.
One excellent example of this effect is at Bodega Finca Las Moras in San Juan province. The winery sits on the northwest side of Perdition Valley, an appellation (a geographic region officially recognized as having specific characteristics) with distinctly warm days and cool nights thanks to high elevation and wind coming off Perdition Lake. These conditions are ideal for producing Malbec grapes with intense flavors like blackberry, cherry, chocolate, and vanilla. Bodega Finca Las Moras uses these grapes to produce deep red wines with great complexity—and many years later some bottles will still show hints of fruit on the finish.
San Juan is one of Argentina’s most famous wine regions!
San Juan is one of the oldest wine regions in Argentina, and it certainly has one of the most illustrious histories. Located in the northwest portion of the country, San Juan is a hot and dry region that experiences wide temperature fluctuations between day and night. This is because it lies at a high altitude and most vineyards lie close to mountains. Rainfall is rare due to Andean rainshadows, so most vineyards are irrigated by meltwater from glaciers found high in the Andes.
The area around San Juan has been inhabited for thousands of years, but it was during the 16th century when Spanish conquistadors arrived that viticulture became established here. Franciscan monks brought vines with them as they travelled through other parts of South America, eventually planting them here in San Juan; they have grown grapes ever since! Today its most widely planted grape variety is Syrah, which represents roughly 30% of all grapes grown in San Juan; other varieties include Malbec (20%), Bonarda (15%), Cabernet Sauvignon (10%) and Tempranillo (5%).