Why it matters
The producer
Natalia Poblete and María José Ortúzar built Moretta Wines around the dry-farmed old vines of Cauquenes, in the inland reaches of Maule Valley. Their stated aim was to make characterful wines that authentically represent the land and justify the generational dedication that kept those vines alive. A small-production estate working with Carignan, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cinsault from bush vines ranging from roughly 20 to 80 years old, all farmed without irrigation on granite soils with high quartz content about 35 km from the Pacific coast.
The wines are made in small batches. Carigno del Maule reaches around 5,400 bottles per vintage; Ceniciento, the Cabernet Sauvignon, around 4,900 bottles. These numbers reflect a deliberate choice to stay small and site-specific rather than scale for volume.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Cauquenes sits in the drier inland section of Maule, where the soils shift from the loam and clay of the central valley to decomposed granite with a high quartz content. The granite here does not hold water the way clay does, which forces the bush vines to root deep and search. Without irrigation, the vines become slow-growing and low-yielding, concentrating what they do produce. The distance from the Pacific, around 35 km, means the coast moderates temperatures without turning the climate maritime. Days are warm enough to ripen Carignan and Cabernet Sauvignon fully, while cool nights preserve acidity on the palate.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
The Cauquenes vineyards are dry-farmed on granite and managed as bush vines, a traditional training system that removes the support wire and lets the vine grow as a low, free-standing shrub. The vines in the Carignan parcels average approximately 75 years old, with some blocks reaching around 80 years. The Cinsault vines were planted in the 1920s and 1930s and are over 70 years old. The Cabernet Sauvignon vines are younger, around 20 years, grown on the same granite soils.
Wines to know
The range in view
The range has three red wines, each built around a single variety and a specific place in Maule. Carigno del Maule is 100% Carignan from the oldest dry-farmed parcels, aged the longest in wood, and produced in the smallest quantities relative to its status as the anchor wine. Ceniciento is the Cabernet Sauvignon, from granite soils and aged in larger, older oak for a shorter period, producing a wine with a velvety texture and pronounced freshness. Vedette is the Cinsault, made by semi-carbonic fermentation from vines planted in the 1920s and 1930s, the lightest and most aromatic wine in the range. A field blend, Les Espias, also appears in the range, with both a red and a white version.
A useful way in
A bottle to begin with
Start with Carigno del Maule. It is the wine offering the clearest account of what these vineyards are: Carignan from dry-farmed bush vines averaging approximately 75 years old, grown on granite, fermented with whole berries and native yeasts, and aged for 20 months in old French oak. The acidity is the wine's defining feature, giving it a length and energy that lifts the red fruit and holds the firm tannin in check.