Santiago Station-- My New Favorite Sauvignon Blanc

I've discovered a new favorite Sauvignon Blanc-- Santiago Station! It hails from the central Valley in Chile-- and since I spent some wonderful time in January 2006 studying in the hills outside Santiago-- this is my favorite wine (for the moment)! This wine has the crisp, fruity flavor of green apples. Plus-- like the white wines from New Zealand, it comes with a screw cap so it's easier to open!

I was in the Valle central in Chile in 2006. My doctoral program held a two week study abroad trip with the intention of studying without "normal" life's distractions posed by our jobs, families, etc. We studied Maturana and Varela, and talked at length about autopoiesis. Initially we were supposed to meet with Maturana and he was to be our guest lecturer, but at the last minute his handlers refused to meet unless we paid him a huge sum of money-- which none of us, nor GWU, could afford. The course for which we all got credit was Human Existence, and I was the TA (teaching assistant). Our classroom was situated in the Chilean countryside at a retreat place remotely situated an hour outside Santiago.

It was a glorious time-- we were all doctoral students full of energy and enthusiasm that we were learning something and capable of changing the world. We were studying in a different culture, experiencing a language barrier, and learning so much more about ourselves as we listened to our professors' lectures, engaged in discussion, and started our days with peaceful meditations and yoga.

The setting was perfect-- a small "country hotel" in the foothills of the Central Valley. In our group was a married couple who had the dubious pleasure of being greeted by a scorpion crawling up the wall in their room at night! The accommodations were very simple, and the hospitality was magnificent!

We took sidetrips through Valle Central- where we got the grand tour of the new Chilean wine vineyard started with French vines. The French studied the soil and the climate of the Central Vally for 10 years before commiting to establishing vineyards there. The new vinyards are a pleasant alternative to seeing sad, barren mountains having been deforested over time.

Now- several years later some of us are still plowing through "the process"-- and even though that part of it is frustrating-- the whole experience was life-changing!