Don Melchor joins New World Winery award shortlist

Wine Enthusiast has named Viña Don Melchor a finalist for New World Winery of the Year, the only Chilean estate among five contenders in the magazine's 27th annual Wine Star Awards.

The shortlist, announced on 10 September, places the Puente Alto producer alongside Te Mata Estate in New Zealand, Leeuwin Estate in Australia, Bodegas Salentein in Argentina and Karas Wine in Armenia. Wine Enthusiast will announce the New World Winery of the Year winner on 12 November, with the trophy presented at a gala in January 2027.

A New World Winery contender

A nomination changes nothing at the cellar door, but it keeps Chile in the room.

Don Melchor's vineyard sits on the northern bank of the Maipo River in Puente Alto, at roughly 650 metres above sea level. The 125-hectare block is split into seven main parcels and 151 micro-parcels, planted mostly to Cabernet Sauvignon alongside small amounts of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot grown on the same alluvial terrace.

The nomination follows a 97-point score for the 2023 vintage, the highest mark Wine Enthusiast has given the label since Concha y Toro released the first Don Melchor in 1987. The wine carries no second label; every bottle from a given year comes from that single Puente Alto site.

"This nomination is both an honour and a recognition of all those who, over the decades, have contributed to building the excellence of Viña Don Melchor," said Enrique Tirado, the winery's chief executive and technical director, in a statement issued on 10 September.

A second big year running

The recognition arrives less than two years after Wine Spectator named Don Melchor's 2021 vintage, scored 96 points, its Wine of the Year in November 2024, the first Chilean wine to top that ranking. Concha y Toro has since opened Casa Don Melchor, a 19th-century estate house in Pirque, for private tastings tied to the label.

The timing highlights a wider split in the wine world this week. While France's own harvest heads for its lowest level since 1957, South American producers are collecting some of the sector's biggest honours. Wine leadership is also moving in the United States, where The Wonderful Company has named a new wine president this month.

A nomination guarantees nothing: four other wineries are chasing the same New World Winery title, and Wine Enthusiast has reserved the announcement for 12 November. Whatever the outcome, Don Melchor already has two of the industry's most closely watched critics weighing in on the same wine within two years.