Christian’s Story
Driving down Ruta 40 the landscape is breath-taking.
Picture the scene: wide open skies, setting sun. The Andes shimmering yellow, red, and brown. It's wild, tough, timeless.
Then suddenly an oasis of green appears. Birds singing, flowers blossoming and row after row of perfectly manicured vines. A simple building. A grape-press. A bodega.
You get out of your truck and dust off your face. You pop your head around the door of the bodega and you see three people; one standing in a vat, up to his knees in grapes, the other two supporting his stand. “Buenos dias” you shout – at which point the man in the vat nearly loses his balance through surprise. All three look at you – confused but friendly. "Is El Jefe around?" you ask. "I am El Jefe” says the man in the vat.
Two minutes later and you're standing outside in the paling sun. El Jefe stands next to you, legs all red splattered up to the knees from the freshly crushed grapes. You tell him you're interested in his wine, maybe even importing it to the UK. He smiles a big, broad smile. Then he heads to the bodega and comes out with an unlabelled bottle. "Bueno" he says as he pulls the cork.
Dark ruby red starts filling your glass. You hold it against the light but none gets through this dark, lush liquid. You swirl the glass a few times, watching how the wine somehow clings to the sides. You take the first sip, swirling the wine around in your mouth. You suck in some air and let the flavours develop. An eyebrow is raised. Then a smile spreads. You can taste the different aromas fighting each other for space in your mouth and brain. A battle of flavours is going - it is wild and intense, like the terroir it is made from. Then the battle dies down, the aromas make peace and a beautiful song of different flavour-notes starts to play.
WOW. You cannot hide your happiness anymore. This stuff is good.
El Jefe meantime is watching your every move – like a parent at their child's first play. When your smile spreads, his face lights with pride. You clasp each others arm and shoulder. You laugh in the setting sun. A deal is done. Another glass shared.
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