Some 26 Chilean wineries will showcase their wines for the Chinese market at the China Food and Drinks Fair, to be held on March 26-28 in Chengdu, southwest China 's Sichuan Province, according to the country's export promotion agency ProChile.

Chile, the world's fourth largest wine exporter, has a long tradition of producing wines, said Hernan Jaramillo, director of ProChile in Guangzhou, southeast China's Guangdong Province. "Our history with the product dates back to the arrival of the Spaniards in 1520."

Starting this year, Chinese consumers will have access to more and better quality Chilean wines at a preferential price, since China eliminated tariffs on Chilean wines in keeping with a free- trade agreement signed with Chile.

"The growth of the Chinese market has been spectacular in recent years," said Alvaro Arriagada, Fairs Manager at ProChile.

China, currently the fourth largest market for Chilean wine, imported more than 88 million liters, 149 million U.S. dollars' worth of wine from Chile in 2014, according to ProChile figures.

A total of 174 types of Chilean wine are available in China, allowing consumers to pair wines with traditional Chinese dishes, such as Carmenere with Cantonese pork spareribs, and Merlot or Pinot Noir with Peking duck.

Chile, which lies along South America's Pacific coast, has ideal geographic and climatic conditions for growing grapes for wine production. Its 1,200 km of vineyards running north to south benefit from a Mediterranean-like climate and a wide variety of soils. Sunny weather and moderate temperatures allow the slow and full ripening of the grapes.

Its vineyards are also protected by natural barriers, such as the world's driest desert to the north, the Andes Mountains to the east, Pacific Ocean breezes to the west, and the ocean and Patagonian ice to the south, making Chile one of the few countries that are free of phylloxera, a common grapevine pest, and helping Chile secure the phytosanitary certification required for exports. Endite

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