El Capricho means ‘on a whim’ and when investor friends Dirk and Paul found a 200-hectare plot of land in the middle of Uruguay in Durazno for sale with 7 hectares of vineyards included, it took their fancy to start making wine for themselves. However, there is nothing whimsical about the El Capricho winery or production, the small and driven team has big ambitions to make Durazno and their boutique wines well known around Uruguay and beyond.

Durazno is some 250km north if Montevideo and the main wine region Canelones, which changes the expression of its wines for two reasons: being further north they have a warmer climate with earlier maturation, and the undulating hillsides and sandstone soils help drain away Uruguay’s often heavy rains. The combination means that Durazno can achieve well-ripened wines with longer cycle varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and still have fresh fruit characteristics. The small and growing portfolio includes a fresh Verdejo, vibrant Tannat and rich blends with Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon.

About El Capricho winery

This passion project was born out of a friendship between founders Dirk and Paul who decided in 2010 to start making premium quality wines in central Uruguay, in Villa del Carmen in Durazno.

Dirk Reinicke was born in Germany but made a new home in Argentina at the tender age of 23, when he moved to South America in search of new and interesting experiences. Dirk soon met Paul and they became great friends, and 30 years later they decided to purchase a 200-hectare estate together in Durazno with seven hectares of vineyards.

And so El Capricho winery was born in 2010, although it took five years for the first vintage of wine to be released. Today the winery has a capacity of 80,000 litres and all the wines come from their own estate vineyards.

About the El Capricho vineyards in Durazno

With seven hectares split into 17 parcels, El Capricho winery focuses on precision viticulture with Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Tempranillo, Pinot Noir and Verdejo planted.

The soils are typically verisols, or expansive clay which contracts and expands with temperature fluxes causing cracks in the clay, with some fine sand. Combined with sloping hillsides, the soils have moderate water retention and vines can grow deep towards the mother rock which has calcareous veins.

The vineyards were all planted between 2003 and 2004 in small lots to avoid any soil erosion during heavy rains. El Capricho is in a conversion process towards sustainable viticulture practises.

About El Capricho wines

All coming from their own estate vineyards in Durazno, El Capricho wines has three lines:

El Capricho Art Collection wines

This is the first line of El Capricho winery and is focused on making youthful and fresh wines with vibrant fruit expression. There is no oak influence in the wines in a bid to reflect the grape varieties as they best express themselves in Villa del Carmen. The Art Collection includes monovarietal Tannat, Verdejo, Pinot Noir and a blend which is predominantly Tannat with some Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon.

El Capricho Reserve wines

This reserve line is focused on making more concentrated red wines which have spent a few months in French and American oak barrels, to add complexity and structure for ageworthy wines. The El Capricho Reserve line includes a 100% Tannat and 100% Tempranillo, as well as a blend of Tannat and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Aguará  Special Reserve

This is the top line of El Capricho winery and is only made in the best vintages and in exclusive limited editions. The wines are all aged in French oak for 18 months and in bottle for at least a year before release. They can be enjoyed on release, but will also cellar well for several years. Within the Aguará Special Reserve line are two wines: a monovarietal Tannat, and a Tannat Blend with 45% Tannat, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Tempranillo.

About the winemaker Javier Alegresa

El Capricho winemaker Javier Alegresa is a fourth generation winemaker who grew up among the vineyards of his family. Having worked for several wineries in Uruguay before, he was headhunted to start El Capricho’s wine production from the beginning.

The winemaking style of El Capricho is focused on traditional winemaking with low intervention in order to express the characteristics of the region of Villa del Carmen, Durazno.