Our Origin and History Within the World of Vinos & Singanis.
1893
The winemaking tradition of the Molina family began with the production of wines, singanis and ratafia at the “hacienda Isuma”.
1930
Franz Kuhlmann, of German origin, founded Kuhlmann & Cia Ltda. in the “hacienda de Vivicha” located in Camargo (Chuquisaca).
1932
The winery enters into the production of Singanis, adding this product to those already produced since its foundation: Vinos y Ratafía.
1935
Thanks to the great acceptance of singani in cities such as La Paz, Oruro and Potosi. The winery was forced to formalize its commercial channels, having to choose a label quickly, being a cognac coffee label with three stars the chosen one. This is where the name ”Singani Tres Estrellas” comes from.
1955
With the characteristic vision of the pioneers, Franz Kuhlmann begins a stage of technification and specialization in grape harvesting and distillation processes.
1973
One of the most important events in the history of the winery took place: it was moved to the city of Tarija, where it found better conditions in terms of land, infrastructure and technology, which catapulted it to become one of the leading companies in the production of Singani.
2005
With the winery already established in Tarija, the new line of singanis ”Los Parrales” is implemented with discontinuous distillation technology, being the only one in Bolivia.
2006
The research project on red varieties for sparkling wines, such as Marcelan and Cadaloc, is initiated.
2009
The production of Singani Ultra Premium “Herencia” begins.
2011
Thanks to the success of the research initiated years ago, the prestigious line of sparkling wine ”Alto Sama” is launched on the market.
2014
A significant fire reached a part of our facilities, where there were tanks with highly flammable distillate. The surprising thing is that they never exploded and a picture of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was rescued, which, according to the winery staff, was the “Santo Patrono” of the place. Inspired by that divine protection, we baptized our line of wines with that name, “Santo Patrono”.
2016
The winery moves to its new facilities in the area of La Matara, El Portillo. These are the most modern facilities in the country and are focused on wine tourism and sustainability.
2019
A very important year for our winery, since we were able to produce the most perfect singani ever elaborated, under the “Herencia” brand.
Franz Kuhlmann
Born on January 6, 1895 in Hamburg (Germany), at the age of 15 he embarked on an ocean liner as a stowaway and, thanks to his audacity, arrived in New York City on December 4, 1910. In need of work, he enters the United States Navy service and participates in the historic rescue of the Trasatlántico Titanic. After a while he deserted the service and migrated to Chile and then spent some time in Argentina, arriving in Bolivia, where he was hired to fix German engines.
In 1930 he acquired the ”hacienda Vivicha” in the Valle de Los Cintis, encouraged by his passion, the elaboration of wines and singanis. This is how he started the first line of Singanis Tres Estrellas.
Wines with History
The company currently has more than 78 hectares under cultivation, distributed as follows:
- Hacienda Vivicha (10): 2.408 m.s.n.m. Valle de Los Cintis.
- Hacienda Las Galanas (21): 2.395 m.s.n.m. Valle de Los Cintis .
- Hacienda La Pizarra (3): 2.300 m.s.n.m. Valle de Los Cintis.
- Hacienda Colón – San Silvestre (23): 1.850 m.s.n.m. Colón Norte, Valle Central de Tarija.
- Hacienda Sunchu Huayco – Papagayo (20): 2.002 m.s.n.m. Sunchu Huayco, Valle Central de Tarija.
- Hacienda El Portillo – La Matara (5): 2.015 m.s.n.m. El Portillo, Valle Central de Tarija.
Gender Inclusion
Our gender inclusion policy dates back to 1972, with the initiative of Mrs. Dora de Kuhlmann. Her goal was to support women in the area, so she decided to implement a female-majority workforce.
Following our origins, we honor this tradition today. The 60% of the plant’s personnel is female, with a leading role in the labeling section, which is made up exclusively of women.
Leaders in Exporting
Currently our company is the leading exporter of wines and singanis among all Bolivian wineries. Among the most significant exports are those of the Singani Los Parrales line, exported to the following markets: United States, China, Mexico, Germany, Switzerland and Japan.
The Alto Sama sparkling wine line is exported to China and the United States and our Santo Patrono wines are exported under its Altiplano line to England and the United States.
