travel south america chile ovalle tololo winery
This day we took a day trip to the town and area of Ovalle and the Enchanted Valley where we visited the Tololo Winery.
Of the dozen or so day trips we had on our cruise, this was one of two failures.
Unfortunately, we visited two winerys in the Casablanca Valley of Chile with which we could compare and made this visit seem possibly worse than it was.
The Tololo Winery is housed in a nicely designed modern building on a slight rise above the vineyard lands.
However, our wine tasting visit was during a drought and much of the surrounding vineyards and orchards were dead.
After we sat around in the bus in front of the winery for more than thirty minutes waiting for a second bus, we were told that two of the wines were not available for tasting.
I believe they said one had been sold out (Pinot Noir?) and one was still in process (Chardonnay?).
If you wanted to stand in line under the sun on an outdoor patio, they would serve you a glass of Rose or canned wine and small finger foods.
What looked like an expensive winery complex came across as a business about to go under.
LINK TO WIKIPEDIA'S WEB PAGE ON CHILE
LINK TO WIKIPEDIA'S WEB PAGE ON OVALLE
LINK TO FACEBOOK'S WEB PAGE ON ENCHANTED VALLEY
LINK TO WEB PAGE FOR TOLOLO WINERY
TRAVEL: March, 2024...
This location has earned an over-all one-and-a-half star (poor+) rating from
Travel Fanatics Unlimited
*1/2
unless noted otherwise all images copyright d. holmes chamberlin jr architect llc
Panorama of modern Tololo Winery complex, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Panorama of large urns on the patio overlooking a burnt field, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Large fermentation tanks at front of winery, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Live grape vines near the entry, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Beautiful pink hibiscus, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Dead or dormant grape vines accross the street, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Half-dead orchard, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Display of a "Tacitas Stone," Little Cups Stone, left by the Molle culture 500 - 700 AD, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
These indentations are thought to have been used for grinding and storing food and/or might have had religious purposes.
I saw many of these at the Monumento Naional Valle del Encanto in the same local.
Wine cellar entry at the bottom of a winding concrete stair in the patio, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Wine cellar barrels, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Wine celler stainless fermentation tanks, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Tasting line on the patio, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Since I don't drink, Lynn got to enjoy her tasting double-fisted, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
Charcutery boards of tidbits, canned rose wine, and pisco, Tololo Winery, Ovalle, Coquimbo, Chile, 2024.
copyright d. holmes chamberlin jr architect llc
page last revised april 2024