Winery round the corner from Machu Picchu
Well not quite, but close! The high-altitude Apu Winery in Curahuasi, Peru is nestled among mountains that the Inca considered to be Gods (a.k.a. Apu), and their wine is named after these deities. Fernando (Peru) and Meg (USA) have embarked on an ambitious project which is literally bearing fruit.
Just around the corner from the winery, Machu Picchu
We visited this unusual winery a few weeks ago which, we are told, is close to the place which produced the very first wine in Peru in 1560. That fact is hard to prove of course, but the oldest winery in the Americas is certainly Tacama, located in the coastal desert near to Ica. Peru has a long heritage of wine and Pisco production, that much is certainly true.
Fernando has decided to grow Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and, very unusually for Peru, Sangiovese on the extremely steep slopes you can see in the photos below. Gary and Fernando are standing on a new block that Apu is planting with Sangiovese in an attempt to double or treble their output for next year.
Another unusual thing about Apu that they cultivate and produce wine in the Southern Hemisphere but on a Northern hemisphere schedule. Due to the heavy rains and hail that normally occur in January and February in the Peruvian highlands, combined with hot and sunny days with cold nights from April to October, Fernando prunes in January and harvests in October, forcing the vines to change their normal schedule to avoid fruit damage.
This lovely Andean location is blessed with a terroir offering steep, well-drained, limestone soils, and huge diurnal temperature ranges. There will often be more than a 25 degree Celsius difference between daytime highs and nighttime lows, meaning that grapes mature well, producing great sugar content during the day and at night take a break in the cold, maintaining acids and improving the structure. This temperature variation cycle also prolongs the ripening season and leads to well-balanced wine.
Fernando and Meg are very keen to increase production, and they have a waiting list for bottles. The demand for their wine has been boosted in no small way by the fact that Virgilio Martinez purchased a few cases for sale in his award-winning restaurant “Central”. If Central stocks it then it has to be good!
To cap off a great visit to the Apu winery there are a couple of nice guest rooms that have been opened adjoining the main house. Visitors will love staying overnight, with your charming hosts, and waking up with spectacular views of mountains and vines.
