One of the biggest changes that came along was the improvements in the wine corks used to bottle the wines. Although Chile was producing good wines, few where surviving to a ripe old age as the corks lacked the density to really protect the wines. If you do find a good Chilean wine that is more than about 8-10 years old, the price tag will let you know you found something special.

Another change that came about in the late 90's to the wine industry was foreign investment. Outbreaks of disease in European wineries, led many of them to hedge their bets and invest heavily in Chilean wineries in the event such a downturn should occur again.

Along with their investment, also came international experts and the money to expand the vineyards. A drive through Chile's wine country now shows hundreds of kilometers new grape fields being planted each year. Almost every grape type is represented, with rapid increase in the Export of red and white wines, and along with an increase in the number of grapes grown for Chile's own Pisco production (strong spirit sold domesticaly).

Gone however are the days of bad corks. Chilean wine has exploded on to the international markets with mass production of high quality wines. No country in the world can compete with the low cost of production that Chile enjoys, relative to the large quantities of high quality wine that it turns. The capacity of the Chilean central valleys to produce high quality wine has yet to be full explored.