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march 2010 / the tasting panel / 41 Ecosur would eventually morph into Eco Valley, a joint venture with Argentina's Valle de la Puerta winery, with whose proprietors Miller shares a common ideology and sense of purpose. Collaborative E≠ ort The relationship started when Miller approached Valle de la Puerta's commercial director, Andrew Noble, about import- ing the winery's offerings to the U.S. "Andrew only wanted half a container," recalls Noble, "and I had been instructed to ignore requests for anything less than a full container." But given that they had the same fi rst name, the synergies between the two idealists began to click. "I saw potential in Andrew and his project about helping small companies develop," Noble ex- plains. "We had so many things in common." Noble found someone else to take the other half container, and the deal was made. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. A couple of years later, the men began to ask what they could do together, and the idea for Eco Valley was born. Both agreed that making Argentina more visible in the U.S. market was a priority. "That grew into what we have today," says Noble, "and our success is based on a few things that have nothing to do with simply making money: honest people, clear goals and fl exibility." Sustainable, Socially Responsible, Ecological "We didn't initially plan to work with wineries," explains Miller, who didn't even drink wine when he arrived in Argentina. But wine, Miller soon realized, offered long-term sustainability and was also an industry that had become closely identifi ed with Argentina around the world. Presenting the extraordinary range of Argen- tina's appellations and wine offerings to the American beverage trade—and, through them, to consumers—be- came the focus of the new company. And Miller, whose sense of responsibility is as keen as his business acumen, insisted on doing it in a fashion that was economically sustainable, socially driven and ecologically minded. "Our strength is that we focus on microclimates in Argentina," says Miller. "I'm happy that Americans know that Mendoza is in Argentina—that's a huge leap forward; but we've tried to be on the cutting edge as far as Argen- tina's other appellations are concerned." Although Eco Valley's focus is on smaller wineries, Mill- er and Noble are quick to doff their hat to the big guns of the Argentine wine industry. "We see other wineries not so much as competitors, but as partners. The more Argentina is successful, the more successful our collec- tive brand is going to be." Miller travels frequently between Eco Valley's North Carolina headquarters and Argentina's capital and wine country, spending face-to-face time with the wineries and overseeing every detail of the Eco Valley venture. "One of the reasons we're successful and were able to create this kind of company is because of our hands-on approach," he says, "because of being on the ground in Argentina." Synergies That Make Sense For Eco Valley, cooperation is more than an ideal; it's an absolute essential. "In approaching a winery, I always ask, 'How can we work together?'" Miller and Noble note. "We look for synergies that make sense," they point out. What has resulted from this approach is a collection of producers representing nearly all of Argentina's major growing regions and a portfolio of wines that includes the best-suited and most characteristic varietals and blends from each appellation. Miller and Noble are justifi ably proud that Eco Valley has managed to sidestep the jealousies inherent in a small import portfolio, in which one winery might feel neglected at the expense of another. "We've essentially created an ex- port cooperative without everybody realizing that they're participating in a cooperative," Miller discloses with a hint of creative mischief. At fi rst, he notes, there was "pullback" from some of the wineries that he approached. But as win- eries from all over Argentina began to see what Eco Valley was all about and the success they were having, a growing number have come into the fold. As Noble puts it, "Results make all the difference in the world." Eco Valley has shown exponential growth over the past several months, and its stable of wineries has burgeoned from just a couple to nearly a dozen, including wineries in Chile and Spain (more on these in future issues of THE TASTING PANEL). And the synergies—those synched-up bundles of col- lective energy that Miller, a former college soccer captain, loves to discover and to play off of—seem to be increas- ing naturally as he and Noble push Eco Valley forward. "These kinds of things have happened organically," Miller smiles. Nothing could please the Andrews more. cover Story Award-winning wines from Valle de la Puerta form an important part of the Eco Valley portfolio. The Best in Show medal is from the 2009 competition at WSWA. PHOTO: SEAN MEYERS