January 31st – Ventisquero Wine Estates (VWE) is thrilled to announce the special commemoration of the 20-year partnership between the company’s renowned, Australia-based winemaker / consultant John Duval, and head winemaker Felipe Tosso—the latter of whom also claimed the prestigious Winemaker of the Year title from Tim Atkin in 2022.
The partnership was first created back in 2003 (Ventisquero was founded four years earlier in 1998), when Tosso got wind of Duval’s retirement from the globally-recognized Penfolds estate. “[Although] we [hadn’t yet met], I knew who John was and was a big fan of his work,” explains Tosso, citing that he immediately began tossing around the possibility of working together.
“The [Ventisquero] executives were OK with exploring this idea, and the owners of the winery, the Vial Family, were also enthusiastic about this joint venture given the reputation of John Duval,” says Felipe Tosso. Tosso called John from Chile to Australia in pursuit of proposing the collaboration, though the initial timing wasn’t exactly right. “When I rang, it was 4 AM in Australia (where John lives), so that was quite an entrance!” laughs Tosso. After a few conversations—held at much more reasonable hours, of course—the rest was history and Tosso invited John to Chile.
Although the winegrowing regions of Chile and Australia are unique in their own right, their ‘New World’ positioning, as well as simultaneous recent expansion into the fine wine sector are just two of the many threads that tie these Southern Hemisphere viticultural areas together. Similar to how the two regions have concurrently worked to push one another forward, so have Duval and Tosso, both with regards to viticultural advancements and developing fine wine sectors spanning two sides of the world—literally and figuratively.
Catalina Bräuchle, PR & Communications Director at Ventisquero Wine Estates, reveals that Duval visits Chile every year to collaborate on blends with Felipe. Occasionally, Felipe travels to Australia. Even during the 2020 pandemic, when Duval couldn’t travel, the duo worked on the blends together online. This ensured that quality remained a top priority in production, regardless of travel restrictions. Together, the duo has created four exquisite, high-end cuvées that beautifully bring each of their knowledge, experience, and culture to the bottles: Obliqua, Pangea, Enclave, and Vertice.
“Each wine has a story and something special,” explains Bräuchle. Pangea was the pair’s inaugural cuvée, and ultimately the first high-end wine crafted at Ventisquero. Bräuchle explains that Pangea is the union of two continents in one wine, and that 2004 marked the first vintage of this special cuvée. On the other hand, Enclave is all about a singular place. “It took John and Felipe 10 years to find the place to grow a Cabernet Sauvignon that would represent Chile with the style they wanted to,” she confirms.
Last but not least, Obliqua and Vertice both hail from the same high-altitude block in Apalta. “They are wines that represent Felipe’s expertise in Carménère and John expertise in Syrah; both worlds combined, people love this wine” Bräuchle explains. Overall, what’s set Duval and Tosso’s partnership apart from others in Chile is their long-standing commitment to breaking barriers, as well as maintaining a “challenging spirit” philosophy that has pushed them to make some of the country’s most ground-breaking, quality-forward wines of the past two decades. “Ventisquero is a young winery with disruptive ideas, so we are always pushing boundaries,” says Bräuchle, highlighting the company’s endeavors in the Atacama Desert (Tara Wines), which are now placed in over Michelin-recognized restaurants around the world. Now 20 years in and stronger than ever, Duval and Tosso’s pioneering future continues to look bright.
About Ventisquero Wine Estates
Ventisquero Winery was first established in 1998 in the Maipo Valley in Chile, later expanding to Casablanca, Colchagua, Leyda, and Huasco Valleys. Ventisquero has taken on the challenge of delivering unique quality wines that express the country’s passion for winemaking and exploring new and extreme terroirs. The estate is also certified under “Certified Sustainable Wine of Chile,” the country’s first official designation created solely for the wine industry. Visit ventisquerowineestates.com for more information and ventisquerowineclub.com to purchase these fine wines.
