Alto de la Ballena winery is the modern-day pioneer of Maldonado and, although boutique in nature, it is still one of the region’s leading producers. Husband and wife Álvaro and Paula switched from the world of finance to the world of wine relocating from Montevideo to Sierra de la Ballena, a whale watching spot just a few kilometres from the sea, in 2000. The steep, granite and schist hillsides where their 8 hectares of vines are planted provide characterful terroir for their smooth, fresh and vibrant wines. 

 

About Alto de la Ballena winery

Paula and Alvaro’s Alto de la Ballena winery may look unassuming from the outside, but this boutique project was a pioneer in Uruguay. In 2000, Paula and Alvaro quit their jobs in the city and bought 20 hectares of land just a few kilometers from the sea.

Although they had always been great lovers of wine, they had no experience making it before but had spent the past two years researching different terroirs in Uruguay before purchasing this virgin land. At first they were seen as ‘loco’ for planting on such poor soils with a much cooler maritime climate, which wasn’t producing any other wines at the time.

Within a couple years, however, people started waking up to the quality from Maldonado and today it is Uruguay’s most up-and-coming wine region.

The winery today has a capacity for producing 50,000 bottles of wine a year, although their annual production depends on the vintage. The winery is at the foot of the hillside and focuses on sustainable wine production.

 

About the vineyards

On the slopes of a hillside on Sierra de la Ballena, the vineyards face the west and are planted on rocky soils which can vary in composition although are all well-draining.

In the highest part of the vineyard, the soils are typically the poorest and rockiest with granite, quartz and schist, which is where they chose to plant their Syrah vines.

In the middle section, in a slightly less stony part, they planted Cabernet Franc. And at the foot of the estate they planted Tannat and Merlot on the richer soils which have some calcareous material and can be worked by machine (whereas the upper and middle sectors cannot). The Merlot, in particular, can make top quality, concentrated grapes – often producing less than a kilo per plant.

Alto de la Ballena is part of a sustainable viticulture program with other producers in Uruguay, seeking to have a low environmental impact and produce healthy grapes by doing careful canopy management and using cover crops. In order to minimise their losses from hungry birds eating the grapes, they have installed some protective netting and use lasers to scare them off.

 

About Alto de la Ballena wines

Focusing on the varieties they most like to drink, with Merlot and Cabernet Franc at the forefront, Paula and Álvaro make attractive and characterful wines.

The classic range includes a fresh and bright Viognier, which spends five months on the lees to add some complexity, and this is Alto de la Ballena’s only white wine currently.

This line also has their rosé which is a dry, refreshing blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Finally, the line includes a red blend of Tannat-Merlot-Cabernet Franc, which is their estate blend and a juicy wine for everyday.

ALTO DE LA BALLENA RESERVA

The Reserva line includes their three most emblematic red grape varieties: an elegant and aromatic Cabernet Franc, a rich and earthy Merlot, and the flagship wine of Alto de la Ballena – their full-bodied Tannat with a dash of Viognier. It’s an original blend, one which works really well and has become the calling card of Alto de la Ballena.

ALTO DE LA BALLENA CETUS

Cetus is the icon range of Alto de la Ballena and their Cetus Syrah is what I consider the best Syrah in Uruguay – a floral, juicy and long wine which comes from their highest-altitude and rockiest vineyards.

The Cetus Cuvée is a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc and reflects Álvaro and Paula’s personal preference for Right Bank Bordeaux! Although this is much more maritime in style with fresh fruit aromas but a density and weight following time in barrel and years in the bottle before release.

 

About the winemaker

Ever since the first vintage, Paula has been heavily involved in the winemaking with the resident winemakers at the time.

Since graduating in winemaking, she has become the main winemaker and takes charge of the production from the vineyard through to the blending.

Flying winemaker Duncan Killiner from New Zealand has also been the consultant winemaker since 2006 for all the different ranges of wines. Duncan is an experienced winemaker in Uruguay, Chile and Argentina.

 

Visit Alto de la Ballena winery

You can visit Alto de la Ballena winery and Álvaro or Paula receive guests every day of the week with previous reservation.

You can contact them via email [email protected] and if you time it right you can enjoy the sunset from their terrace with wine and cheese.

If you want to add a picnic or lunch, then get in touch as Alto de la Ballena sometimes organise special meals for guests paired with their wines.