On Sunday 17 February Sydney will play host to Rootstock Sydney, the first Sustainable and Artisan Wine and Food Festival.  The inaugural Rootsock event will feature more than 30 artisan wineries from around the world who share common philosophies on viticulture, winemaking, and sustainability.

Wineries and breweries from as far away as France, Italy, and Spain will come together with some of Australia’s best wine producers to celebrate an artisan wine industry that favours sustainability over conventional agricultural practices, an internationalist view of winemaking and winegrowing, and transparency and honesty in wine and winemaking.

Complementing the main Rootstock Wine Festival, the Rootstock Sydney Food Festival showcases food and beverage stalls operated by local producers, growers, and chefs who will present an array of fresh produce, small goods, bread, coffee, beer, and specialty dishes. Other events include an Orange Wine Bar featuring extended skin contact white wines and a series of master classes focusing on wine and local produce.

During the event a wine-influenced musical artwork titled “Sounding Terroir” will be performed by percussionist, composer, and conductor Eugene Ughetti of Speak Percussion in collaboration with winemaker and musician James Erskine. “Sounding Terroir” uses five layers in a musical composition to challenge the orthodoxy of terroir, and to deeply extend the drinking experience of one wine, from one place, in one year. This ambitious, evolving, collaborative hybrid artwork conveys the life-force and historical tale of country and time through wine and music.

Eugene Ughetti is a percussionist, composer, conductor and artistic director of Speak Percussion. He instigates arts projects that impact on contemporary culture and presents work that stimulates our consciousness. Eugene performs throughout the world in diverse performing arts projects and in unexpected contexts. He is the winner of prestigious awards including the inaugural Sidney Myer Creative Fellowship and the Freedman Award.