We were sad to leave San Pedro early this morning, we have never been anywhere like it; this little dusty town in the middle of the desert. Calama Airport was pleasantly uncrowded and we had coffee and pastries before our flight. Back in Santiago, we were soon picked up by our driver and an hour and a half later we arrived at La Casona at Matetic Vineyards, in the Casablanca Valley. I don’t know what I expected, but I was taken aback at the beauty of the hotel, all on ground level, with its large rooms all opening onto three sides of a courtyard filled with lush flowers. The octagonal restaurant, with huge windows looking onto a pond, is a short stroll away, as is the outdoor swimming pool. The Rodrigo greeted us and was so friendly, and helped us to book activities for the afternoon and the next day. After a quick lunch we set off on a wine tour of the estate by minibus. The guide pointed out the different varieties of grapes, which are currently being harvested. In the fields there were little wind turbines which prevent winter frost from forming on the vines. The valley is called Rosario because it’s in the shape of a rosary, and it’s owned by the Matetic family who run the winery and farm in a bio way, using herbs and animals as natural fertilisers and weed control. We had a tour of the winery itself before a wine tasting back at the restaurant. I opted out of this because I had tried a mouthful of wine at the winery and it instantly gave me dreadful heartburn. Later we had a seven course dinner while being entertained by a guitar player and an accordionist playing traditional dance music and a couple of elderly but enthusiastic dancers.
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