To keep thieves away, Concha y Toro's founder spread word that the devil lived in his cellar; the story became a wine brand in 1966
Casillero del Diablo, Concha y Toro's line of Chilean wines, carries a haunting story in its name. Casillero del Diablo means the devil's cellar, and its origin, according to the winery itself, is a rumor invented by the founder to protect his best wines from thieves. With Halloween around the corner, here is how it went.
Melchor de Concha y Toro was born in Santiago in December 1833 and was a lawyer, politician and businessman. In 1883, he founded his winery in Pirque, at the foot of the Andes, and brought grapevine cuttings from Bordeaux, France, which he planted in the Maipo Valley, Concha y Toro's official blog recounts.
He kept his most valuable wines in a private cellar, its entrance closed by a heavy, dark wrought-iron gate. Over time, bottles began to disappear, even though the keys stayed with him. According to Casillero del Diablo's official website, people in the area who had heard about Don Melchor's wines could not resist the urge to taste them.
Instead of posting guards at the door, Don Melchor turned to local folklore. He spread word that strange things happened at night in the cellar, that the devil lived there and walked among the barrels, and that whoever stole would pay for it. Fear did the rest: every echo, shadow or shape took on a supernatural explanation, and the bottles stopped disappearing, the company says. The date of the episode is not given; the website says only more than a hundred years ago. There is also no independent record that the story happened this way: this is the winery's own version.
The brand was born only in 1966, long after the founder's death, when the winery turned the story into the name Casillero del Diablo. Today the family of wines runs from the classic Reserva line to Reserva Privada, according to the brand's website.
Bebidário's catalog lists several labels from the Reserva line, such as Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon, the Carmenere and the Sauvignon Blanc.
The original cellar is in Pirque and is part of the winery's tour program. The 120-minute premium guided tour includes the museum, a four-glass tasting, the park and the Casillero del Diablo, for 50,000 Chilean pesos. There is also a 180-minute Casillero del Diablo night experience with dinner, for 100,000 pesos, according to Concha y Toro's wine tourism website.
Sources: Concha y Toro, official blog (June 18, 2026), Casillero del Diablo, official website (accessed October 23, 2026), Concha y Toro Enoturismo, official website (accessed October 23, 2026).
