Home › Wine Notes › Viña San Pedro (VSPT Wine Group)
1865 Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc Leyda Valley 2015
WhiteChile2015
By Daniel Min · Tasted 2019-11-13 · Published 2026-09-09 · Updated 2026-09-09
At a glance
Wine Enthusiast 91, Editors' Choice (2015 vintage) · critic listed on Vivino 89 (Dec 2015) · two bronze medals at international competitions in 2016
Market note: The only cool-coastal white in the 1865 range. The reds (Cabernet, Carmenère, Syrah, Malbec) account for most Korean sales, so the Sauvignon Blanc is comparatively little known. Vivino vintage averages peak with 2013 (3.8) and dip with 2014 (3.4); 2015–2017 sit evenly at 3.7. The label has since changed from 'Single Vineyard' to 'Selected Vineyards'.
What this wine is
In Korea, 1865 is less a wine name than a phenomenon. Viña San Pedro was founded in 1865 by the Correa Albano brothers in Chile's Central Valley and is today the heart of VSPT, Chile's third-largest wine group, owned by the Luksic family. 1865 is its premium line, named simply for the founding year — and that number took on an entirely different meaning in Korea. Kumyang International started importing it in 2003, and around 2006–2007 spread a story among golf-club sommeliers that this was 'the wine that lets you shoot 18 holes in 65 strokes'. It became the bottle you give to mark a hole-in-one; sales jumped 142% over that period, it has been Korea's most recognised wine brand for eight straight years since 2016, and it passed one million bottles a year in 2022. As of 2023, 66% of all the 1865 exported worldwide is drunk in Korea. A brand Chile made and Korea raised.
That fame, though, belongs almost entirely to the reds. This bottle is the white living in their shadow. It is 100% Sauvignon Blanc from San Pedro's own vineyards in the Leyda Valley on the Pacific coast, a cool site chilled nightly by sea breezes. No oak, stainless-steel fermentation, 13.4% alcohol. The producer's note: "Pale yellow with greenish tints. Citrus like grapefruit, white asparagus, sweet peas, minerals and a hint of chili pepper. Fresh, with strong acidity and a long finish." They suggest oysters, crab and shellfish.
What the world says
The 2015 vintage earned 91 points and an Editors' Choice from Wine Enthusiast: "Fresh, angular aromas of jalapeño, bell pepper, beach breeze and citrus fruits are elegant, chiseled and potent." It was one of only two 1865 wines to get an Editors' Choice that year; the other was the Limited Edition Blend 2013. A critic listed on Vivino gave it 89 (Dec 2015).
The community is calmer than the critics. 186 Vivino users average 3.7, with 52% at 4 or above and 39% at 3. The label as a whole averages 3.6 (1,189 ratings). Keywords run citrus, grapefruit and lime; grass, asparagus and gooseberry; then tropical, pineapple and lychee, and minerals. Acidity 3.9/5, sweetness 1.4 — the numbers of a textbook dry Sauvignon Blanc. The comparison that turns up most often in the reviews is New Zealand.
"Very nice Chilean SB. Had a very grassy finish — almost a New Zealand style. Look forward to buying this again." — Vivino review, Dec 2017, 4 stars
"Cooled nightly by the sea breeze, which imparts a lovely salty minerality. Brimming with tropical fruit — lychee, passionfruit, pineapple. A single vineyard that keeps getting better with age." — Vivino review, Jan 2021, 3.5 stars
"At first the green, plant-like side is strong, but the citrus comes up and the balance improves. For similar money I'd recommend a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc." — Vivino review, Feb 2018, 3.5 stars
That last review sums up why the community sits at 3.7: not bad, but the same money buys Marlborough.
How I drank it
November 13, 2019, 4 stars. "Delicious sauvignon blanc."
This was three weeks into my logging habit, and the day I caught up on a backlog: fifteen bottles in one sitting. Almaviva 4.5, Juan Gil 3, Veuve Clicquot 4.5, Kendall-Jackson Chardonnay 3, Montes Alpha Merlot 3, and this. Among the whites it tied for my top score with the Kung Fu Girl Riesling (4), and the note is three words long. I did not yet know how to take a wine apart and write it down. What I do remember is that 'delicious' was sincere.
Why I sit above the community's 3.7 is obvious to me now. Back then I only knew 1865 as a red — the Cabernet Sauvignon that turns up at every company dinner, the bottle golfing elders give as gifts. The discovery that the same brand made a crisp white smelling of grapefruit and cut grass was a pleasure in itself, and that pleasure is probably worth 0.3 of a star. Vivino's European and American reviewers, meanwhile, score this bottle side by side with New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. In that comparison, 3.7 is fair.
In October 2023 I gave the 1865 Old Vines Cabernet 2019 a 4 and the Desert Valley Syrah 2018 a 3, so my scoring of this brand had not moved much four years on. Nor had my conclusion that the white is more interesting than the reds. In Korea the 1865 white sits in the low-to-mid ₩30,000s (about US$23–27), an easy price for oysters or hoe (Korean sashimi). But with a drinking window that closes in 2025, there is no reason to hunt for the 2015 now — buy a recent vintage of the Selected Vineyards.
Vivino community data
2015 vintage rating distribution (186 ratings, average 3.7)
| 5★ | 19 (10%) | |
| 4★ | 78 (42%) | |
| 3★ | 72 (39%) | |
| 2★ | 14 (8%) | |
| 1★ | 3 (2%) |
Most-mentioned aromas
| Family | Mentions | Top keywords |
|---|---|---|
| Citrus | 75 | citrus 31 · grapefruit 19 · lime 11 · lemon 9 |
| Vegetal | 56 | grass 19 · asparagus 13 · gooseberry 11 · straw 6 · bell pepper 3 |
| Tropical fruit | 31 | tropical 14 · pineapple 6 · lychee 5 · kiwi 3 |
| Earth & minerals | 30 | minerals 17 · earthy 4 · honey 3 · stone 3 |
| Tree fruit | 20 | green apple 6 · peach 3 · stone fruit 3 |
| Oak | 12 | butter 5 · dill 2 · oak 2 |
| Spice | 9 | pepper 5 · mint 2 · jalapeño 1 |
Structure: Acidity 3.9/5 · Intensity 3.1/5 · Sweetness 1.4/5
Average by vintage (all vintages: 1189 ratings, average 3.6)
| Vintage | Average | Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 3.6 | 86 |
| 2012 | 3.4 | 69 |
| 2013 | 3.8 | 264 |
| 2014 | 3.4 | 169 |
| 2015 | 3.7 | 186 |
| 2016 | 3.7 | 77 |
| 2017 | 3.7 | 104 |
| 2018 | 3.6 | 50 |
My original note (Vivino, 2019-11-13)
“Delicious sauvignon blanc.”
Buying in Korea
Frequently asked questions
What kind of wine is 1865 Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc?
A 100% Sauvignon Blanc white from Chile's Viña San Pedro (founded 1865), grown on the company's own vineyards in the cool Leyda Valley on the Pacific coast. Stainless-steel fermented, 13.4% alcohol, a crisp dry style of grapefruit, lime, grass, asparagus and minerals. The 2015 vintage: Wine Enthusiast 91 and Editors' Choice, Vivino 3.7.
How much does it cost?
Overseas retail US$17–20. In Korea the Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc sold for ₩42,000–52,000 (about US$30–38, Vinobot, pre-2022 data); the Selected Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc sold today is ₩32,000–37,000 (about US$23–27, Vinobot, August 2026). The importer is Kumyang International.
What food does it go with?
The producer recommends oysters, crab and shellfish; Vivino lists shellfish, vegetarian dishes and goat's cheese. With its high acidity and grassy, citrus aromas it suits hoe (Korean sashimi), oysters, spring-greens namul salads and sushi. Serve cold at 8–10°C.
Why is 1865 called the 'golf wine'?
1865 is San Pedro's founding year. Around 2006–2007 importer Kumyang International spread the story at golf clubs that this was 'the wine that lets you shoot 18 holes in 65 strokes', and it became the bottle for celebrating a hole-in-one. It has been Korea's most recognised wine brand for eight straight years since 2016 and passed one million bottles a year in 2022; as of 2023, 66% of all 1865 exported worldwide is drunk in Korea.