Laura Hernández Espinosa

Leo and La Sala de Laura, Bogotá

A pioneer in crafting liquid treasures that honour Colombia's biodiversity

While a political science degree led Laura Hernández Espinosa to undertake diplomatic missions, her heart knew better and she ditched embassy life to fuse her real passions: social development, food and drink. Today, Hernández Espinosa is head sommelier at Leo in the trendy neighbourhood of Chapinero in Bogotá, and the manager of La Sala de Laura, found in the same building.

With a keen interest in food and wine from a young age – her first encounter with alcohol was as an 11-year-old, secretly trying champagne under the table at her aunt’s wedding – Hernández Espinosa moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina, for university. With plenty of free time in the day, she used it wisely and signed up to take a sommelier degree at EAS wine school. After graduation, Hernández spent some time working in diplomatic relations in India and France, before pursuing a distinctly different path.

Leo opened in 2007, headed up by her business partner and mother, Leonor Espinosa. Between 2009 and 2020, Hernández Espinosa was executive director of non-profit organisation FunLeo, whose gastronomy-for-development pillar restores and promotes ancestral knowledge, particularly in Indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities. She holds the current role of president, collecting promising biological species to help her develop future drinks.

With her background as a sommelier, Hernández Espinosa has a deep interest and knowledge of ingredients and drinks from all over Colombia. In 2021, Leo reopened with a new bar, La Sala de Laura (No.44 on The World’s 50 Best Bars list 2024), headed up by Hernández Espinosa, who is responsible for the entire drinks offering. La Sala de Laura’s cocktail selection is based on the Territorio: seven different distillates that are based on Colombia’s myriad ecosystems. Five are Hernández Espinosa’s own creations and two originate from ethnic groups – Hernández Espinosa has long worked with small producers in remote regions who had been affected by social inequality. From the dizzying heights of the Andes to the Páramo, the country’s barren moorlands, the drinks menu cascades through the Colombian landscape.

From the inspired wine pairings – or non-alcoholic drinks pairing – enjoyed with Leo’s eight or 13-course tasting menus, to the extensive and impressively curated wine list, creative cocktail menu at both Leo and La Sala de Laura, and house-made Territorio spirits, Laura Hernández Espinosa is a worthy winner of Beronia Latin America's Best Sommelier Award 2024.

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