The Satchwell Micro-Winery in Casablanca Valley

Sunday we were invited by Silvia and Jeff Satchwell to their micro-winery in the Casablanca Valley.  Silvia is the sister of Jose Macedo, a colleague of mine at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.   Jose and Silvia are originally from Peru.  Silvia studied in the U.K. and her husband, Jeff, is American.  They have lived in Chile for nearly 20 years and have a house (mostly unoccupied) in Santiago and this estate in Casablanca.

One of the two cats, both have reached a good age, as has the dog

Silvia with her books and cat - the definition of "'home"

They are both geologists and travel a good deal especially in the Americas for their work.  They are also adventurers and have taken trips to many exotic locations just returning from Cambodia and Thailand.  Their large and well designed house was built by themselves (!) and they have some land where they have planted Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc grapes along with some fruit and olive trees.

The expansive patio with great views

The friendly German Shepherd always brought a small log to play with 

Where the wine magic happens

Jeff shows some past vintages along with some of the wine making equipment

Looking back towards Casa Satchwell

Some of the vines

These birds, always found near vineyards in Chile, lay their eggs in the grass according to Jeff

Jeff examines the ripe olives

I tasted one from the tree to verify its bitterness  - yes, really bitter!

A lemon (or lime) tree

A perfect yellow rose

They share their home with two sweet cats and a large, friendly dog.  Although the weather was not so wonderful (cloudy with a bit of drizzle) we really enjoyed getting to know them.  Such interesting people!  They shared their homemade muffins and their cured olives.  The place is full of books and I do mean full.  It was a treat to see the many tomes scattered everywhere in the living areas.

Some of Jeff's cured olives - quite tasty

For lunch, they hosted us at Vina Indomita, a winery in Casablanca that sits atop a hill.  The view was very nice and the fish was decent (though not super delicious).  We shared two bottles of red wine which were fine indeed.

View from Vina Indomita

This is a modern white building easily seen from the highway connecting Santiago and Valparaiso

Our hosts - the intriguing and warm Satchwells

Our first wine - Casablanca is a cool region so the only red that grows well is Pinot Noir

This blend, not made in Casablanca, was very good

A tasty lunch

View from winery across the Casablanca Valley

After lunch, they took us to their favorite local wine shop, Casa Wine House (the name is a little redundant but you get the idea).  We bought a few bottles and then headed home for a quiet evening at our place in Vina.  A stimulating and comforting, at the same time, Sunday!

House Casa del Vino in Casablanca