Over the past few decades, Chile has moved from producing simple table wines to crafting some of the world’s most distinctive, terroir-driven bottles. Family-owned estate, Miguel Torres Chile, has played its part in this transformation, particularly when it comes to sustainability and innovation but still respecting tradition.
Today, under Jordán’s guidance, the winery is entering a new chapter – one defined by regenerative viticulture and the preservation of its greatest treasures: ancient, ungrafted vines.
"By working regeneratively, we preserve Chile's diversity so our wines can tell the story of this land for generations to come.” – Eduardo Jordán
Helping Chilean wine to progress
The Torres family began winemaking in Spain in 1870, but it was not until 1979 that it planted its first vineyards in Chile’s Curicó Valley. At the time, most Chilean wine was rustic and traditional. Torres introduced stainless-steel fermentation and precise temperature control, helping to modernise the industry and earn global recognition.
Certified organic since 2004, Miguel Torres Chile has now embraced regenerative viticulture to rebuild soil health.
“Organic was just the beginning,” Jordán says. “Regenerative viticulture breathes new life back into the soil.” His programme includes sowing cover crops to boost biodiversity, creating wildflower corridors, rotational sheep grazing for natural weed control, and relying on non-toxic disease management. This proactive approach ensures the vineyard ecosystem remains vibrant and resilient.
Jordán also explained how being certified Fair Trade takes sustainability beyond the vineyard – guaranteeing fair wages and long-term contracts for growers, particularly smallholders in Maule and Itata. Many of these farmers tend century-old País vines and Fair Trade ensures they can continue to do so without fear of losing their livelihoods.
“True sustainability cares for both land and people,” Jordán adds.
A vineyard first philosophy
Since joining in 2018, Jordán has championed a vineyard-first philosophy that celebrates old vines and their site expression. Known to drive 17 hours to reach a remote plot, he minimises intervention in the cellar, so each wine reflects its origin.
“Our oldest vines are Chile’s greatest treasure,” he says.
Chile’s geography makes this possible: stretching 4,300 km north to south, with the Andes to the east and Pacific to the west, the country encompasses an extraordinary range of climates and soils – from arid desert to cool, rain-soaked south, and from granite and limestone to volcanic ash. Crucially, phylloxera never arrived, meaning many vineyards remain ungrafted, some more than 150 years old. Jordán believes this diversity, combined with heritage is what defines Chile’s role in fine wine today.
Jordán then showcased key wines that embody this philosophy.
Estelado NV, Miguel Torres Chile
Chile’s first traditional-method sparkling wine, made from dry-farmed Pais vines aged 60–150 years, in Maule. Bright red-berry aromas, a delicate mousse and a soft 4 g/l dosage. A grape once destined for bulk wine was revived in 2010 when, with the help of the government, Torres launched the Estelado project in collaboration with the University of Talca – an initiative that has played a key part in the revitalisation of the grape. (RRP £14)
Cordillera Chardonnay, Limarí Valley, Miguel Torres Chile, 2024
The search for places to produce quality wines led Torres to the Limarí Valley where Chardonnay takes on a vivid expression. The vineyard is just 12 km from the Pacific and the maritime influence, cool climate and calcareous soils deliver mineral wines with finesse and freshness. (RRP £18)
Escaleras de Empedrado Pinot Noir, Maule Valley, Miguel Torres Chile, 2015
Chile’s first slate-soil vineyard in the Maule Valley has battled frost, birds and wildfires to produce world-class Pinot Noir. Located 25 km from the ocean on soils known locally as piedra laja, its vibrancy and aromatic lift mark it out as uniquely Chilean, even as parallels are drawn with Priorat. (RRP £100)
La Causa, Itata Valley, Miguel Torres Chile, 2022
From Magdalena Alto and Guarilihue in Itata’s dry interior, this blend of Chile’s traditional red grapes Cinsault, País and Carignan re-interpret criollo heritage. Rustic, yet fruit-driven, it is light ruby red in the glass with hints of spices and dried fruit – great acidity and firm tannins. (RRP £16)
Los Inquietos Series, Miguel Torres Chile
The jewel of Jordán’s portfolio. Inquietos 01 (2021) is an ungrafted field blend planted in 1945 in Limavida on granite soils of the Maule dry coast, dominated by Cot (Malbec) with touches of Cabernet Sauvignon and César (Romano). Inquietos 02 (2022) comes from ungrafted Cabernet Sauvignon planted in 1905 at La Aurora vineyard near the Andes. Only 1,000 bottles were made. (RRP from £50)
“Every year we do something different,” Jordán explains. “Los Inquietos is about celebrating identity and diversity through tiny, irreplaceable plots.”
Looking ahead
Under Jordán’s guidance, the estate’s wines, from sparkling País and slate-grown Pinot Noir to ancient-vine micro-lots demonstrate that Chile not only competes globally but increasingly leads the field.
For Jordán, honouring Chile’s past and securing its future are inseparable. “Chile’s diversity is unmatched. By working regeneratively, we preserve that diversity so our wines can tell the story of this land for generations to come.”
The wines of Miguel Torres Chile are imported and sold in the UK by Fells, which is a commercial partner of The Buyer. To discover more about them click here.
