Chile has announced the addition of four new Denominations of Origin, in a bid to better recognize the varying microclimates within certain regions in the country. The announcement was made via the Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile on Friday 25 May, reports the Drinks Business.

Three of the new DOs are particularly significant as they are not located in a political municipality, a previous requirement for an area applying to become a DO. Now, any prospective DO must only be close to a municipality of the same name, and/or an internationally acclaimed vineyard.

The three groundbreaking DOs include Lo Abarca, in the San Antonio Valley, and Apalta and Los Lingues in the Colchagua Valley. The fourth new DO, Licantén, was already recognized as an official district in the Curicó Valley and qualified under the previous requirements.

Producers in these regions will now be able to include the DOs on their wine labels, alongside their respective Andes, Costa or Entre Cordilleras denomination.

Speaking to the Drinks Business, the international legal advisor for Wines of Chile, Federico Mekis, said the change in ruling would help “pave the way to get rid of the rigidity of the political division of the State, and recognizes the specificity of the localities.”