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winery

De Lucca

by Pablo Ortiz June 7, 2016

Reinaldo De Lucca is one of the most particular winemakers in Uruguay, he has been true to his style for decades and any De Lucca wine is recognizable for being De Lucca though and through. The De Lucca winery is up in the hills of Canelones where you can visit and taste with Reinaldo or his daughter Agostina.

The wine portfolio includes all the classic Bordeaux varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc, however, De Lucca is also a fan of Syrah, Marsanne, Pinot Noir and Tannat, as well as experimenting with Nero D’Avola, Sangiovese and other new varieties.

June 7, 2016 0 comment

Guide to wineries in Uruguay, Antigua Bodega winery in Canelones Montevideo

Antigua Bodega Uruguay

by Amanda Barnes June 6, 2016

written by Amanda Barnes

There’s so much to love about Antigua Bodega Uruguay winery: a family business now with the sixth generation picking up the mantle, a strong female-led winemaking team, and a pioneer of juicy, unoaked Tannat. Based in Santos Lugares since 1928, Antigua Bodega Uruguay is both historical and innovative.

About Antigua Bodega Uruguay winery

Today the winery is run by the fifth and sixth generation of the Stagnari family with Virginia Stagnari as Director, and her children Mariana and Carlo working with her in the winery taking care of winemaking and commerce respectively.

A major pillar of production for Antigua Bodega Uruguay is on efficiency and sustainability in the vineyard and winery, focusing on making wines with the least intervention possible. “The objective is to make wines in the most natural manner by reducing any additives and avoiding any manipulation of the wines,” explains Head Winemaker Laura Casella.

About the vineyards

With two vineyards, Antigua Bodega Uruguay has 10 hectares of vines planted in Santos Lugares in Canelones and 20 hectares planted in Melilla in Montevideo.

The vineyards have a shallow layer of clay and sand with a pink granite bedrock which has decomposed mica, quartz and feldspar that is between 600 and 800 million years old and a unique formation found in Uruguay. These soils allow for good drainage and the winemaking team believes it gives a mineral edge to the wines.

Part of the philosophy of the winery is the minimise their interference with the soil and vineyard, simply using canopy management, cutting back weeds and using cover crops to look after the vines, allow good air circulation, provide nutrients to the soil and plant, and maintain a healthy natural ecosystem of microflora and microfauna in the vineyard.

Between the two vineyards and following a careful selection process of clones most suitable for each terroir, Antigua Bodega Uruguay has Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Tannat, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, Marselan, Cabernet Franc and Syrah planted. All of their wines are exclusively made from their own estate grapes.

About the Antigua Bodega Uruguay wines

With a wide portfolio that ranges from structured Tannat and Merlot wines to fizzy and fresh Pet Nat, there’s plenty to taste at this family winery:

CUESTA DI GRAVA

The youngest line of wines, Cuesta di Grava focuses on good value, fruit-driven wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat.

PEDREGAL

Pedregal is the flagship range which focuses on mainly monovarietal wines made with Merlot, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese, as well as a couple red blends and a rosé made from a blend of Syrah and Cabernet Franc.

BELLA DONNA

This vibrant and fresh line of wines is all about showing the potential of Uruguayan red wines without oak. It includes a juicy, unoaked Tannat, Cabernet Franc and Marselan, and there’s a Bella Donna Blush light rosé in the range too.

PRIMA DONNA

Another flagship range for the winery, Prima Donna is the reserve line which goes through a few months in oak in the case of the red wines (Tannat, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon), and three months on the lees with regular battonage for the Sauvignon Blanc. These are food friendly wines.

MBURUCUYA

One of my favourite wines of the winery, this juicy red wine is named after the Mburucuyá blue passionflower which is native to South America, and the wine has attractive notes of blue and black forest fruits and wild flowers. A captivating and rather unique blend of Syrah, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Tannat and Sangiovese.

OSIRIS

One of the top lines of the winery and always aged for a few years before release, there are two Osiris wines: an Osiris Tannat and an Osiris Merlot, both of which are only ever produced in top vintages for the variety. These are structured, full-bodied wines which age well in the cellar and show the affinity Uruguay has for both varieties.

IL NERO

The icon wine of Antigua Bodega Uruguay, Il Nero is a conceptual wine that was developed over several years and was made in ode of Virginia’s father, Hector Nelson Stagnari. This complex 2009 Tannat has already spent almost a decade in the bottle and will continue to cellar well for at least another decade to come.

About the winemakers

What makes Antigua Bodega Uruguay stand out in the wine world is the female-led winemaking team, with Mariana Stagnari and Laura Lopez taking the reigns of production.

Mariana Meneguzzi Stagnari

Mariana is the sixth generation of the Stagnari family and started studying winemaking in 2004, after which she moved full time into the family winery. In between, she has done vintages in California and Australia.

“We are always seeking our own innovative style, which is both modern and yet reflects what’s happening in the market,” says Mariana.

Laura Casella Lopez

Laura has been the winemaker at Antigua Bodega Uruguay since the beginning of her career in 1988 and has worked with three generations of the family. With over 30 years working with the vineyard, she has unparalleled experience in Santos Lugares as well as Melilla.

“Our philosophy is to appeal to a wide range of consumers in the world, which is why we make wines ranging from well-aged Gran Reserva wines to unoaked, young, fresh wines,” says Laura.

Visiting Antigua Bodega Uruguay winery & vineyards

The winery is open every day and you can visit the wine shop from 9 till 11.30am, and in the afternoon from 1.15 to 5pm.

For tours and wine tastings, you should book in advance and can taste a range of different wines, depending on your preference. The Premium Tasting comes with a selection of local cheese and homemade empanadas, or groups can book ahead of time to have lunch with the family which could be anything from a Uruguayan asado (barbeque) to paella!

Video of Antigua Bodega Uruguay

June 6, 2016 0 comment

Featured Wineries Featured Uruguay Uruguay Colonia Wineries Restaurant Hotel Winery

Narbona

by Pablo Ortiz June 5, 2016

written by Pablo Ortiz

Narbona winery in Carmelo is inside its own idyllic world with a creamery, a bakery, a handsome boutique hotel, a glistening harbour and private beach, an excellent restaurant and a large riverside estate. Narbona wine lodge is actually the very reason many people come to Carmelo, and it is worth staying here overnight or over the weekend to learn a bit more about this historic wine region of Uruguay and its modern wine production today.

About Narbona winery

Bodega Narbona winery is located on a 50-hectare estate where Juan de Narbona founded one of the first wineries in the country in 1909. In 1990, the original estate was given a new lease of life as a luxurious resort and in 1998, the first vineyards were planted. In 2010, the foundations were laid for the construction of a new winery based on the original site of the historic winery.

The winery is also home to a small orchard where fruit trees grow around the vines, from which they also produce plenty of delicacies to taste in their restaurant.

About the Narbona vineyards

Harvest at Narbona becomes a rather lively affair with families, friends and visitors welcome to take part during the harvest months of February and March.

Narbona has 15 hectares of vines between Carmelo and a small vineyard in La Barra near Punta del Este in Maldonado. In La Barra there is a small plot of Sauvignon Blanc which takes advantage of the cool maritime climate for fresher wines.

In Carmelo, where the main vineyard is, the soil is 80% limestone which is very particular to the region, and this calcareous soil allows the roots of the vines to grow deep into the ground. In this vineyard, the varieties are all planted in small lots so that they can be carefully managed for harvest ideal times. The varieties Narbona produces in their Carmelo vineyard include Tannat, Pinot Noir, Petit Verdot and Syrah, and they source a small amount of Cabernet Franc from Colonia.

All the vineyards are managed sustainably with integrated viticultural techniques and minimum intervention in order to respect the environment.

About Narbona wines

Narbona has a handful of wines, which range from the everyday Puerto Carmelo line which focuses on fresh fruit expression and no oak ageing, to their reserve Narbona line which focuses on varietal expressions and more complex wines, including the Roble Tannat which is aged in oak barrel for year.

Tannat is the main star of Narbona’s production, and especially their Tannat Luz de Luna which is their most complex and full-bodied wine. However Narbona has also become very well known for their Pinot Noir, which is produced on the limestone soils by the riverside.

About the winemaker, Valeria Chiola

One of the most experienced winemakers in Colonia, Valeria Chiola has been winemaker at Narbona since the modern wine production began. Born into a family with vineyards in Uruguay, she has been surrounded by wine since a young age and spent some time training in Italy too.

Visiting Narbona hotel, restaurant & winery

A tasting in the beautiful boutique winery usually takes place in one of the cellars: either the atmospheric century-old cellar, La Antigua Cava, or the new cellar which was built to replicate the historical winery.

You can taste the wines with winemaker Valeria to get her own insight into the vintage and variety, and can accompany your tasting with a local cheese and charcuterie platter, or with a four-course wine and tapas pairing. If you prefer to taste in the sunshine, you can also have a wine and picnic hamper in the gardens and vineyards.

For those who are keen to get involved in the blending, there’s an option for a blending session with the winemaker, and you can also explore their grappa production learning how to make your own! And if you are visiting Narbona during harvest, there are several opportunities to get involved in picking and crushing grapes with their harvest experiences and harvest festival.

Narbona is of course much more than just a winery, and combining your visit with a stay at the delightful Relais & Chateaux hotel and excellent restaurant is definitely recommended! So many items on the menu are homegrown and homemade, from their own cheese and dulce de leche to the olive oil and jams.

June 5, 2016 0 comment

Argentina Luján de Cuyo Wineries Winery Guide Restaurant

Belasco de Baquedano

by Amanda Barnes May 28, 2016

written by Amanda Barnes

With some Spanish money behind this project, the main attraction in Belasco de Baquedano winery is the impressive sensory aroma room where you can train your snout by sniffing all the different aromas that appear in wine from primary fruits, to oak induced spice and even defects in wine like skunk and sulfur. 46 different primary, secondary and tertiary aromas are captured in chemical form in different containers so you can test your ability to recognize different aromas in a wine.

After a good time sniffing, head to the restaurant for a wine paired lunch, or to the tasting room to put your new nose skills into practice.

The upstairs restaurant has a good view over the vineyards and the distant mountains with a large terrace perfect for posing for pictures. Back inside, the busy dining room serves a fixed four-course menu with wines paired to the food. Expect pretty tapas dishes, tangy goats cheese salad, and a big piece of steak to grace the menu as well as a sweet dessert to go with their Late Harvest Malbec.

Most of Belasco’s wines are Malbec however they are increasingly diversifying with Malbec rose and sparkling Malbec as well as a Torrontes.

May 28, 2016 0 comment

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