In style, Chilean wines are between the classically dry, austere Old World classics and the exuberantly ripe and fruit driven Australian and Californian wines. There have been clonal problems with Sauvignon Blanc but the best examples from producers such as Carmen are first class and offer a halfway house between the grassy herbaceousness of Sancerre and the piercing, tropical fruit intensity of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Chardonnay is also successfully cultivated, with Montes and Errazuriz producing particularly noteworthy wines.

Carmenére, also known as Grand Vidure, is usually blended with Merlot and produces complex, earthy reds with rich, blackcurrant flavours and firm, ripe, tannins. Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon are both widely planted and the wines are becoming more elegant and more refined year on year. Perhaps the most interesting development of recent years has been the joint venture between Philippe de Rothschild and Concha y Toro culminating in Almaviva, a classic Bordeaux blend that is the first Chilean wine to seriously challenge France's finest wines.