Chile is producing wine on par with Napa and doing interesting things with varietals that get wine experts very excited.

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In Chile, navegado is made by first caramelizing sugar in the bottom of a pot, adding a box of cheap red wine (even boxed wine in Chile is tasty), and then simmering it with some cinnamon sticks, cloves and orange slices.

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By 1969, the partners decided they needed a full-time winemaker and turned to Mr. Draper, a 33-year-old Stanford grad who had been making wine in Chile. (Long story.) Although he grew up on a farm in Illinois, Mr. Draper was a multilingual epicurean who'd spent time in the vineyards of France and Italy by the time he arrived at Ridge.

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Wine from Australia, Chile and Argentina was mostly bottom-of-the-barrel, cut-rate stuff you'd be embarrassed to order on a first date.

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Hutcheon made the wine in his vineyard in Cachapoal Valley, Chile.

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Hughes now gets about 75% of his wine in California and the rest overseas, from Chile to Australia, where the bidding tends to be less intense but the regulatory hurdles higher.

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Its red wine, in particular, can stand up to any good equivalent from Chile or Argentina, and most of the big supermarkets (Soriana, Chedraui, Mega) carry a range.

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The wine's bouquet of jammy fruits, light florals and just a hint of chile pepper match the piquant chiles, garlic and luscious steak in this hearty, family-friendly dish.

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This tiny South American country that lies within the golden 30 to 35 parallels along with viticulture giants Argentina and Chile -- as well as South Africa, New Zealand and Australia -- is an emerging wine country that as well as producing exciting new blends is home to a budding wine route comprised of 15 small wineries.

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