Capitan Pastene
An Italian colony founded in 1904 in Araucania, still curing prosciutto to the recipes it arrived with.
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In 1904 a group of families from Modena and the surrounding Emilian country arrived in Araucania under a Chilean colonisation scheme and founded a settlement named for the Genoese navigator Juan Bautista Pastene. The land they were given was not what they had been promised and the early years were hard, but the community stayed, and what survived best was the food: prosciutto cured in the local climate, salami, and fresh pasta, made to recipes brought from Emilia and now the village's identity and its economy. An annual prosciutto festival runs in the village, and the producers sell directly.
What you actually see
- An Emilian colony from 1904 - founded under a Chilean scheme.
- Prosciutto cured locally - to the recipes the families brought.
- Salami and fresh pasta - the rest of the tradition.
- A prosciutto festival - held annually in the village.
When to go
Year round; the festival is the busiest time. Half a day.
Honest expectations
The village is small and remote, with limited services and a long drive from anywhere. Producers are family operations with their own hours. The colonisation scheme that brought them also took Mapuche land, which is not always mentioned locally.
Nearby
Contulmo and the coastal range are west; Temuco is north-east.
What to pack for Capitan Pastene
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.