Atacama's vineyards grow in the world's driest desert. Chile's administrative Region III is also its official wine region, with Copiapó Valley and Huasco Valley as its two subregions.
In Huasco's Longomilla and Nicolasa sites, daily Pacific camanchaca fog brings a small increase in humidity to vine leaves and helps sustain viticulture in the desert. Huasco is also part of Chile's pisco vine and wine cultural landscape, while Atacama falls within the pisco-grape denomination-of-origin zone established by Decree Law 521.
For still wine, Tara Sauvignon Blanc comes from Huasco Valley. The Tara Project began planting in the Atacama Desert in the early 2000s. Its Sauvignon Blanc is described as mineral, structured and tense. Concrete-egg ageing adds structure and roundness, and the wine is fermented with native yeasts before unfiltered bottling.
Inside the region
1 named area
Each guide keeps its place within Atacama clear, with a direct route back to the map.