Casa Real • Santa Rita X Araya • Pairing Dinner

10 minutes ago

4 min read

A classique experience at Araya as it stands as the world's sole Michelin-starred Chilean restaurant, incorporating Japanese techniques and ingredients. Araya showcases the rich heritage and travels of Chefs Francisco Araya and Fernanda Guerrero across Chile, South America, and Japan. Every dish reflects a profound love and respect for origin and seasonality, grounded in South American and Japanese ingredients, exceptional culinary skills, and genuine hospitality.

Araya stands out due to its distinct, original culinary identity, showcasing Chilean and South Pacific ingredients through Japanese techniques, rather than adopting a generic “fusion” style. It received its first Michelin Star in Singapore’s 2024 guide, just around eight months after its opening, marking it as the first Chilean restaurant—and the first Chilean South Pacific restaurant—to achieve this distinction.guide.

Chefs Francisco Araya and Fernanda Guerrero blend their Chilean heritage with their experiences in Spain, Japan, and China. Their cooking revolves around the Pacific Ocean: Chile on one side, Japan on the other, with Singapore as the convergence point.

This approach gives the menu a strong internal coherence. Japanese precision is infused into Chilean flavors, while Chilean chilies, smoke, fermentation, and earthiness add character to Japanese seafood and proteins.

We started with a Brimoncourt Champagne to cleanse the palate before diving into a curated set, a CEDRON YERBA MATE which is a distinguised Fermented mate tea along with a CORN FLAN which is a generous Choclitos. My fave appetizer dish include the MARRAQUETA- a Classic pan Chileno and a LA PANERA CHAPALELE, a Sourdough potato bread and it went well with the merkén chili butter and cochayuyo seaweed butter.

Araya is distinctive because of it's strict criteria for

Quality of ingredients: featuring seafood, Chilean produce, and carefully chosen Japanese ingredients.
Technical precision: Japanese-inspired mastery of temperature, texture, and preparation.
Originality: a truly unique Chilean-Japanese culinary expression.
Flavour balance: bold ingredients like merkén and aji amarillo are used sparingly for subtlety rather than just for impact.
Consistency: the restaurant quickly reached a refined standard after opening.
A strong point of view: the cuisine narrates a cohesive story about the Pacific, Chilean identity, and the chefs’ global experiences.

I adore the AVOCADO "CARDENAL" so pretty with the Snow crab salad, avocado, celery that went so well with my Casa Santa Real 2019 - delicieux and that was my favourite vintage. We also sampled the BOCADO DE DAMA and the Nori, along with the ENTRAPS - PRINCIPALES, a lovely EMPANADA - Wagyu beef, Pebre and a CHUCHOCA, so amazing a dish with Carn pillows, yuba, saffron, truffle along with a Casa Santa Real 2020.

My AGED ECUADORIAN CACAO M5 Wagyu Striploin was really excellent - best wagyu I had these past 3 years and it paired with my other fave - the Casa Santa Real 2021 ; a powerful CabSav.. and so the AGED ECUADORIAN CACAO was filled with that tantalizing aged Ecuadoroan cacao sauce, and we also sampled the 2023 vintages, everyone's fave but not mine... and we also had the EL POSTRE - PAVLOVA, which is Chef Fernanda's housemade custard apple, super yummy!

Casa Real - Origins

The Santa Rita Alto Jahuel Estate is located at the foot of the Andes Mountains, 565 meters above sea level and 30 km south of Santiago. The estate's ancient alluvial terraces, first planted with vines in the mid-1600s, are created by old deposits from the Maipo River—composed of gravel and rounded stones beneath a thin layer of loam, which provide excellent drainage and allow vine roots to reach deep for water. Cool morning breezes from the Andes help moderate daytime temperatures, allowing grapes to ripen slowly while preserving fruit intensity and acidity.

The wine’s expression

Casa Real, a renowned wine from Maipo Valley, masterfully embodies the unique qualities of Alto Jahuel's terroir. Known for its remarkable character, it boasts concentration and elegance, presenting a fresh and vibrant profile with an aromatic expression accentuated by ripe black fruits and subtle spicy notes. On the palate, it is intricate and well-structured, with fine, enveloping tannins that provide texture and enduring persistence. Its silky, polished finish genuinely mirrors the vineyard’s origin.

Casa Real Cabernet Savignon 2019

Casa Real 2019 excels by merging the classic Alto Maipo Cabernet characteristics with an exceptional freshness and structure. It is robust and concentrated without being heavy or overly sweet: the wine features ripe black fruit, firm yet rounded tannins, refreshing acidity, and a long, savory finish.

This wine originates from old Cabernet Sauvignon vines in Alto Jahuel, within Chile’s Maipo Valley. The vineyard benefits from free-draining ancient alluvial soils and cool air descending from the Andes at night. These conditions help produce ripe fruit while maintaining freshness and aromatic clarity.

The 2019 growing season was warm and dry, but not excessively hot. According to winemaker Sebastián Labbé, the temperatures later in the season eased gradually, allowing the tannins to ripen properly while preserving freshness. This balance is key to the wine’s appeal.

We tasted a classic, fairly serious Cabernet profile:

Blackcurrant and cassis.
Blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, and plum.
Cedar, cigar box, and graphite.
Mint, balsamic notes, and a hint of green pepper.
Cocoa, vanilla, tobacco, and subtle toast from oak aging.

On the palate, it is dense and concentrated, but the fruit remains precise rather than overripe. The tannins are firm yet rounded, giving the wine shape and length, while acidity keeps the finish lively.

Casa Real 2019 spent around 20 months in barrel, with more than 80% new oak. This may seem substantial, but the oak is reported to be well-integrated rather than overpowering the fruit. It adds cedar, toast, spice, and cocoa while the Cabernet’s cassis, graphite, and mint remain evident.

The best feature is likely the combination of weight and tension: