Bodega Marquez de la Viña winery in Cochabamba has been making Bolivian wines and Singani for over 60 years. The owner of the winery, Don Avelino Mérida, inherited his passion for winemaking and distilling from his Italian heritage.
The winery is currently run by his gallivanting granddaughter, Evelyn Mérida, who is bringing fresh ideas to the wine production after studying winemaking in Chile.
Bodega Cruce del Zorro winery in La Concepción valley in Tarija, Bolivia, is run by two families: the Morenos and the Graniers. The name of the winery translates to ‘the crossing of the fox’ in English, which honours the legend that if you pass a fox on the way to the vineyard, then this will bring a good harvest.
These winemakers work with a host of grape varieties including Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Syrah and are passionate about supporting small growers in purchasing their grapes for wine production.
At the Cepas de Fuego winery in Villa Abecia, in the Cinti Valley, third-generation winemaker Weymar Ríos Cavero harmonises traditional wine making methods with his old vines and Criolla grape varieties to produce distinctive wines and spirits.
Weymar also makes Bolivia’s national beverage Singani and a rather delicious white port-style wine which you can taste visiting this small family winery.
Kohlberg winery is a family producer which has over 50 years of experience in the industry since their first harvest in 1963. The vineyards are based in Santa Ana La Vieja wine region, 15km outside of the city of Tarija in Bolivia. Bodegas Kohlberg has 145 hectares of cultivated land and an extensive range of grape varieties including: Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Syrah, Barbera and much more.
Although this winery stays well rooted in its family traditions originally from Germany, it has strived to introduce modern equipment in order to be at the vanguard of development in the wine industry in Bolivia.