Bodega Cerro Chapeu winery is the wine pioneer of Rivera on the border of Brazil, first planting vineyards in 1975.
About Bodega Cerro Chapeu
Bodega Cerro Chapeu winery and the Carrau family weren’t only pioneers in planting vines in Rivera, on the border of Brazil’s Campanha region and city of Santana do Livramento, but also in designing the first winery in South America which was built into a hillside – four floors down. The gravity-flow winery, constructed in 1997, was ahead of its time and continues to allow the family to make low intervention wines without any need for pumps of temperature control in the stone cellar.
The Carrau family has a long history of wine production with more than ten generations dedicated to the profession, which started with Francisco Carrau Vehils in Catalunya in 1752. Today the winemaking is in the hands of his descendent Dr Francisco Carrau Bonomi who designed the family winery in this unique region of Uruguay, just 12 km from the border of Brazil.
After many years and generations of making wines in Canelones, the Carrau family pioneered the new wine region of Rivera in 1975 under Francisco’s father, Quico Carrau Pujol, who was working with UC Davis in a research project in search for a terroir which would be virus free. The well-draining sandy red soils of Rivera were ideal, and they planted vines of Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Arinarnoa, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Today the family winery is run by Francisco, Margarita and Gabriela Carrau from the family along with an energetic young team who are helping to elevate the wines of Rivera on the international stage.
About the Cerro Chapeu vineyards
Bodega Cerro Chapeu winery has 35 hectares of vines in Rivera, right on the border of Brazil. In fact, part of the estate is technically in Brazil! The vineyards all have a deep red sand soil with a high iron content which is well-draining and has low organic content. The vineyards are on average 25 years old but the estate also has some old vines of 40 years.
As well as their Rivera wines, Bodega Cerro Chapeu produces some wines from grapes they purchase from a grower they have worked with for many years in Melilla in Montevideo who has vines of Petit Manseng and Viognier, which they vinify in Cerro Chapeu.
All the vineyards are managed sustainably, and Bodega Cerro Chapeu has been recently experimenting with Nebbiolo, Sousao and Manseng Noir.
About the family
Francisco Carrau Bonomi – Head Winemaker
Dr Francisco Carrau is one of Uruguay’s most experienced winemakers who has been working since 1981 in his family winery as well as heading up several important research projects into the winemaking of Tannat, yeast strains and microbial terroir.
Margarita Carrau Bonomi – Wine Tourism Director
Margarita Carrau has been working in developing the wine tourism area of the family winery since 2000 and was instrumental in the creation of the Association of Wine Tourism in Uruguay in 2003, Los Caminos del Vino. Today Margarita brings her energy and experience into positioning Rivera as an important tourism hub in Northern Uruguay.
About Bodega Cerro Chapeu wines
With four decades of wine production in Rivera, Bodega Cerro Chapeu has several lines of wines which suit different occasions:
CASTEL PUJOL
The entry line is Castel Pujol, which is a popular every day wine which you can find in most supermarkets in Uruguay and Brazil with a range of mainly varietal wines ranging from Alto, Clásico and Reserva.
CERRO CHAPEU RESERVA
Cerro Chapeu Reserva is the winery’s line which represents the varietal expression you can achieve in this unique terroir. Expressive monovarietal wines of Tannat, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay are joined by a limited edition Nebbiolo.
YSERN
Ysern is a range which was developed exclusively for the Brazilian market and includes blends from different plots of Tannat in Cerro Chapeu. The range includes a Reserva, Gran Reserva and Gran Tradición which each spends between six and 18 months in oak.
1752 GRAN TRADICIÓN
1752 Gran Tradición is the family’s renowned due of blends, which includes a red blend of Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon and Arinarnoa from Cerro Chapeu, and a white blend of Petit Manseng and Viognier from Melilla. These are wines which are enjoyable in their youth but are made with great ageability in the cellar too.
SUST
Sust is the family’s traditional method sparkling wine made from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes which are handpicked in Cerro Chapeu and spend more than three years on the lees to develop a rich complexity.
BATOVI TANNAT T1
Batovi Tannat T1 is the icon wine of the Bodega Cerro Chapeu and is a single vineyard Tannat from their oldest plot of vines in Rivera which are planted with Clone 1 of Tannat.
About the winemaker, Danny Mayo
Danny Mayo has been working with Francisco Carrau and the family in the winery for over 10 years and is highly experienced in the region of Rivera.
Visiting Bodega Cerro Chapeu winery in Rivera
You can visit the gravity flow winery and vineyards in Rivera for a tour and tasting at 11am from Friday through Tuesday, with previous reservation. Families are welcome and the whole facility is accessible.
If you are a large group (12 people or more) you can stay for a specially catered lunch or dinner with the gorgeous views over the wine region and vineyards.
Bodega Cerro Chapeu also organises several different wine festivals throughout the year and takes part in the local eno-gastronomy festival which includes wineries and restaurants on both the Uruguayan and Brazilian border. You can keep up to date with their different activities through social media.
