What: The Itata and Biobío Valleys - The cradle of Chilean wine - Walk-up Tasting
When: Wednesday 23rd May, 12.30pm
Where: Main Hall, London Wine Fair

In town for the week, Juan Ledesma of Terroir Sonoro will join Alistair Cooper MW for a  masterclass at London Wine Fair, where they’ll explore two of the two most historic Chilean wine regions, Itata and Biobío. Juan will be pouring Nitanto and Reptiliano from his range.
  

Why should you go?

Historically, Chile’s wine scene has been led by large-scale, wealthy producers with little in the way of boutique, pioneering estates. In recent years, however, this landscape has evolved, as a small, committed movement of young, new-generation winemakers, are beginning to turn heads with their human-scale and authentic approach to Chilean winemaking. Juan is one of the leaders of this movement. 

A note about Juan

Juan Ledesma is a jazz musician and an erudite, artistic soul who made his first vintage in 2013 after discovering 300-year-old vines in Itata and Bio Bio. With a growing suspicion that everything he had learnt studying agronomy was a lie, he set out on a winemaking mission to support local growers in a quest to make exceptional wines, with the hallmarks of quality and verve.

Juan’s methods are both unusual and pioneering. Lees are suspended by the resonance of jazz music that he composes, records and then plays into the wine when it’s ageing in barrel. This combines two visions – the science of using sound waves to mimic battonage and the emotional link to jazz. A lot of his inspiration, including the names of his wines, are taken from his hero, Chilean poet, artist and scientist Nicanor Parra.