Artesana

About Artesana Wines

Artesana is a small estate winery located in the sub-region of Las Brujas in Canelones, and was founded in 2007 by American entrepreneur Blake Heinemann and his family in collaboration and partnership with Uruguayan winemaker and director Analía Lazaneo.

Artesana is passionately dedicated to practising sustainable farming and upholding the authenticity of the wine as a true expression of the fruit.

The vinous goal of Artesana is two-fold: to introduce more North Americans to Uruguay and it’s signature varietal Tannat through their wine exports, and, locally, to introduce Uruguayans to Zinfandel by producing the only Zinfandel in the country to date. 

About the Artesana vineyard

Artesana is located on a 32-hectare estate in Las Brujas sub-region, around 50 kilometres north of Uruguay’s seaside capital of Montevideo. In 2007/08, the team planted 8.5 hectares of vineyards in 13 different blocks of Tannat, Merlot and Zinfandel, and in 2013 Cabernet Franc was added. In 2019 Chardonnay and Petite Manseng were also added to the vineyard.

Ocean breezes keep the vines well ventilated and the clay-rich calcareous soils in combination with 220 days of intense sunshine annually produce growing conditions similar to France’s Bordeaux region.

The Artesana vineyard is entirely hand-farmed. Sustainable, low-input, dry farming is practised using the Integrated Pest Management program (IPM) to maintain the long-term health of the land. Meticulous pruning protocol results in approximately 6 tons per hectare (2.5 tons per acre). Green harvesting and leaf pulling is done to ensure optimum maturity of the grapes, and the harvest typically takes place in late February and March. Grapes are all field-selected and hand-harvested in the early morning hours.

The philosophy behind Artesana wines is to allow the fruit to express itself. Winemaker Analía Lazaneo lives by the maxim “Wine is made in the vineyard” and key to her winemaking style is minimal intervention using gentle handling techniques throughout the process.

Lots from the various blocks are fermented separately in small stainless steel tanks, providing an abundance of options in constructing final blends. Each lot goes through 15 to 20 day cool maceration regimes for aroma and flavour extraction, and barrel ageing is done in new and used French and American oak to carefully accentuate the flavours of the wines.

All Reserva wines are bottled without fining or filtration and bottled-aged an additional 6 to 12 months in the winery. Although they are accessible upon release, you can also age most of Artesana’s wines for up to a decade or more.

ARTESANA RESERVA & EDICIÓN LIMITADAS

The Reserva line includes Tannat, Tannat-Merlot, Tannat-Zinfandel and Cabernet Franc-Merlot blends, each of which spends between 12 to 18 months in oak. Edición Limitadas are limited released wines which include a Tannat-Zinfandel-Merlot blend and a Zinfandel, and each spends 18 to 24 months in oak.

These are the more powerful and complex wines of Artesana. One of our favourites at South America Wine Guide is the very unique blend of Tannat-Zinfandel-Merlot, which has a deep fruit expression, fine tannins and a lingering finish.

SIN BARRICAS

This unoaked line of wines includes a Tannat and Zinfandel which are both vinified in stainless steel tanks and released young in order to express the full fruit aromas.

ROSÉ

Artesana has four different rosé wines (rosado in Spanish) which include refreshing Tannat, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Zinfandel. They are each vinified in stainless steel to accentuate the fresh fruit expression.

WHITE WINES (Blancos)

Coming from the new vineyards, Artesana has a Chardonnay-Petit Manseng blend which is fermented in oak.

About the winemaker, Analía Lazaneo

Artesana’s winemaker Analía Lazaneo was born and raised in Uruguay’s capital, Montevideo.

She studied viticulture at the University of Montevideo and later attended the College of Vitiviniculture in Canelones where she received her Technical Enology Certification as well as earning a Professional Sommelier Certification from the Facultad de Quimica program in Montevideo.

Analía worked for Pizzorno Winery and Antigua Bodega San José, before joining Bouza where she became Assistant Winemaker. She has travelled extensively to the wine regions of the world including Argentina, France, Spain and California.

“Artesana is like my child,” says Analía. “I started with this project from the beginning, we chose the land, the varieties to plant, the clones, rootstocks, the size of the blocks, a million things! This kind of work makes me feel like an artist and day by day I reaffirm that wine is a way of life.”

Visiting Artesana winery & restaurant

Artesana is a very popular winery to visit in Canelones for its charming boutique nature and great vineyard views from the outdoor terrace.

On a visit to the winery, the winemakers will accompany you on a tour through the estate vineyard and introduce you to the wines including Reservas and a barrel tasting.

You can stay longer and enjoy a picnic in the vineyard or lunch on the beautiful patio overlooking the vineyard.

Artesana’s private chef prepares multi-course lunches using products from the season and the region, many in the open wood-fired grill.

Artesana also offers VIP tours, winemaker dinners, parties, weddings, festivals and special events throughout the year. Special events and lunch are by appointment only.

Tastings, visits and the wine shop is open from 11am till 6pm on Tuesdays through Saturdays. Booking is recommended, especially in peak season.

You can email [email protected] to book in advance.