Archive for April, 2020

EN ROUTE THROUGH ATLANTIDA TO MALDONADO

Carrying on up the coast from Montevideo towards the region of Maldonado, the muddy brown waters of the immense estuary of the River Plate eventually gives way to the deep blue sea and crashing waves of the Atlantic Ocean, creating a unique climate for cultivating grapes. This is very much the promised land for new ventures, with intense new planting and the use of the latest cellar techniques, funded by serious investment from neighbouring South American countries rather than the sweat and toil of Italian immigrants. And while Tannat may still be the benchmark for quality, it is Portugal and Spain’s white Albarino grape that flourishes the best in Maldonado’s soil and climate.

The perfect place to begin a search for the roots of this region’s wine heritage is Vinedo de los Vientos the historic winery of Pablo Fallabrino. This is genuine wine tourism, a face-to-face tasting with Pablo himself, a tour of his sustainable vineyard, and delicious dishes cooked by his wife, Mariana. The vineyard is located in Atlantida, officially still part of Canelones, but the salty winds whipping in from the Atlantic beaches, give hints of the character of Maldonado.

From the Italian winemaking region of Monferrato, Piedmonte, Pablo’s grandfather arrived here a century ago in 1920. The family planted vines and built up one of Uruguay’s biggest bulk wineries. When Pablo inherited the original 30 hectare family estate just by the coast he proceed to plant 12 hectares but with a weird and wonderful selection of grapes; Nebbiolo, Arneis, Barbera, Dolcetto. “These are Piedmont grapes,” he exclaims, “planted as a hommage to my grandfather and because they grow perfectly in this part of Uruguay.” Using no sulphites, natural yeasts, no fermentation and little maceration, Pablo explains that, “I am an anarchic winemaker, an outsider who never studied oenology. So I have no preconceptions, just making wine with the one essential element, the grapes.” The results may not be for everyone, but they make for a sensational tasting session – Notos, a raw, vibrant Nebbiolo, with no ageing just immediate bottling, a bubbly PetNat blending Arneis and Chardonnay, Anarkia, a 100% Natural Tannat, unlike any other Tannat you will taste in Uruguay.

Pablo’s neighbour is Bodega Bracco Bosca a small 11 hectare vineyard recently brought back to life by another ‘figura’ of the Uruguay wine scene, Fabiana Bracco. Wine influencer, promoter, publicist and media personality, Fabiana took over the family vineyard when her father passed away, and has rapidly transformed it into a niche boutique brand selling 70% of production overseas, to 18 different countries. Make the effort to visit and you discover an idyllic setting, rolling hills surrounded by swaying eucalyptus trees, the Laguna del Cisne eco-zone, and the Atlantic Ocean just ten minutes drive away. Her hipster cellar mixes modern technology with eye-catching street art murals, a rock&roll sommelier conducts tastings, and while the Petit Verdot is a delightful surprise, pride of place goes to the fruity, fresh Moscatel, another of Uruguay’s signature grapes.

Nothing quite prepares you for the spectacular first view of Maldonado’s latest and most revolutionary eco-friendly winery, Vina Eden. The rolling hills and plains of the pampas rise up steeply at the village of Pueblo Eden, and sitting atop Cerro Negro, an 800 foot rocky outcrop is a futuristic, almost surreal metal and glass winery. Rising up three levels to maximise the force of gravity during vinification, Vina Eden also features two wind turbines which provide power for the bodega and local village, while crisscrossed with the neat parcels of vines down below are graphic screens of solar energy panels. The huge investment for this groundbreaking project comes from Brazilian entrepreneur Mauricio Zlatkin. Innovation extends to the cellar too, where Tulip-shaped cement tanks for ageing, not coated as is usual with epoxy, dominate the winemaking process. And quality is high, with just 60,000 bottles produced each year from the7 hectares that have been planted since 2009. I tasted a surprising Pinot Noir rose, crisp and fruity, along with the smooth unoaked Tannat Cemento, but it is the zero-dosage Brut Nature Method Champenoise that stands out during a tasting.

While Vina Eden is inland from Uruguay’s famed glamour beach resort of Punta del Este, you need to go further up the coast as far as the latest fashionable seaside hideaway, Jose Ignacio, to discover another new creative and innovative winery, Bodega Oceanica Jose Ignacio, a project that encompasses art and architecture as much as wine. Marcelo and Natalia Conserva made a second start to their lives after successful business careers to build a dramatic rusty-red metallic gravity-led cellar, commissioned immense sculptures by local Uruguayan artists for both their vineyards and olive groves, while even the wine boxes are collage-like works of art. 22 of their 30 hectare property produces award-winning olive oil, while the 7 hectares of vines are predominantly Albarino and Pinot Noir. Their multinational Flying Winemaker, Hans Vinding Diers, is based in Patagonia, and while supervising the 2020 harvest, tells me that, “we are making clean, precise wines that speak of this unique ocean terroir – easy to drink, not needing to be aged, with a saline, maritime character.”

The winery that defines Maldonado and for many defines modern Uruguay winemaking is Bodega Garzon. It is certainly a unique state-of-the-art project that has already been elected top winery in South America. While the two driving forces creating and inspiring Garzon wines are Uruguayan – agronomist Eduardo Felix and cellar manager German Bruzzone – the financing and unique concept of Garzon comes from Argentinian, Alejandro Bulgheroni , who owns 15 wineries across the globe, from Mendoza and Napa to Bordeaux and Tuscany. Garzon was a dusty rural pueblo before he invested in 1,000 hectares, recognising the tremendous potential of Maldonado to produce high quality wines. It is no coincidence that the rolling vine-clad hills are known as Uruguay’s Tuscany, and the 240 hectare vineyard he has planted so far already produce some 2 million bottles. I follow Eduardo round the vineyrad as he scuttles between tiny parcels of immaculate vines, sipping Uruguay’s other favourite drink, Mate, from his metallic mug, vacuum flask wedged in his elbow. He was the winemaker who first planted Albarino in Uruguay, and is rightly proud of their Petit Clos Albarino, harvested at night, fermented in cement tanks then aged in a unique cigar-shaped Vicard barrel. An exceptional wine.

Winelovers can easily spend a whole day enjoying Bodega Garzon, from hiking and picnicking in the vineyards, creating your own blend with an oenologist or a cooking lesson with the Bodega’s gourmet restaurant chef, Ricki Motta. The cuisine here is under the watchful eye of Argentina’s world renowned chef, Francis Mallmann, who has his own restaurant and hotel in Garzon village. My last memory of this Uruguay wine trip was a memorable wine pairing lunch looking out over the vineyard with my Garzon and Inavi hosts. Wonderful wines, delicious food, great company – every reason to plan a return trip as soon as the world returns to some kind of post-Covid normality.

CANELONES

Barely 50 kilometres outside Montevideo lies the region that is the historic heart of the Uruguay wine industry. The pastoral plains and fertile hills of Canelones accounts for  over 60% of the nation’s production, including some of the best Tannats, with some 80 wineries, many of them offering tastings, accommodation and restaurants for enthusiastic wine tourists.

The perfect place to start a tour is at the discrete, respected Bodega Marichal, one of the historic Canelones vineyards. Juan Andres Marichal’s family roots go back to France, where an ancestor serving in Napoleon’s army settled in the Canary Isles from where his great grandparents emigrated to Uruguay in the early 1900’s – in fact many winemakers around here come from the Canaries. He is the fourth generation, and this is still very much a family affair with 91 year-old grandmother Tesita, tending the flower gardens, his parents living on the estate and an auntie making the best empanadas I have ever tasted to accompany tastings. And the wines are surprising, from a gourmet Rose to a robust Pinot Noir blend, but above all, the Tannats, where Juan Andres still make a lot of use of the cellar’s original 1938 cement tanks, not even coated with epoxy, producing light, modern wines, not too heavy on tannins, not over macerated.

A fifteen minute drives takes me to the gates of Establecimiento Junico, home of the Deicas family, a big business vineyard covering some 200 hectares, whose brands range from Uruguay’s most well known name, Don Pascual, to the fine wines under Familia Deicas and the more recent Bizarra label, a funky experimental project that includes testing a one hectare certified organic vineyard, a rarity in Uruguay. Bizarra is the initiative of the latest generation of the family, oenologist Santiago Deicas, who bubbles with enthusiasm as we taste his Viognier, macerated as a genuine Orange wine, and a truly Natural, no-sulphite Tannat aged in a terracotta amphora. Winelovers enjoy a memorable day here, visiting the 18th century vaulted barrel cellar, built by Jesuit priests, and feasting off the cuisine of Santi’s chef sister, Mechi, whose brasserie menu spans creative and vegetarian dishes alongside the juicy steaks of a traditional Uruguayan asado barbecue. 

A very different experience awaits at the neighbouring Vinos de Lucca , the rambling farmhouse and seemingly-chaotic garage cellar of Reinaldo de Lucca. Forget about organised, sophisticated wine tourism. Here you come face to face for a tasting with the wonderfully knowledgeable, grumpy and opinionated Reinaldo, alongside Agostina, his charming, feisty and equally opinionated daughter. It is a rollercoaster ride, sampling totally unexpected wines for Uruguay; Nero d’Avola and Aglianico, grapes originally from the family’s heritage in the south of Italy, the French Cote du Rhone varietals, Marsanne and Syrah, that draw on Renaldo’s experience studying oenology at the famed Montpellier University, and rich, velvety  Tannats, expertly aged in traditional oak barrels, while Agostina experiments with a fresh, fruity Natural cuvee. Reinaldo tells me that “the soul of my wine is in the vineyard. You can have all the latest technology and gadgets in the cellar but that is no guarantee you will make a good wine.” 

A solemn black and white photograph of the Pisano family, who arrived in Uruguay at the beginning of the 20th century,  takes pride of place in the homey tasting room at Bodega Pisano. Planting their first vines in 1914, the winery dates back to 1924, and today is run by three fourth generation brothers – all big personalities, producing equally big, quality wines. Tastings are a long, expansive and bon vivant experience, but visits are restricted to wine professionals, a shame as enthusiastic winelovers would enjoy the experience of this genuine artisan bodega. The family shy away from the trend of  the  single vineyard ‘cru’ concept, preferring to vinify dozens of parcels separately before blending, which creates intense, complex wines, especially their Tannats. Just when you think you have tried all the Pisano wines, the latest family oenologist, Gabriel, brings out his own creations, under his new Vina Progreso label. A modern-day Flying Winemaker, Gabriel buys in grapes and vinifies in murky corners of other bodega’s cellars. “I have created what I call a Bodega Experimental, with absolutely no rules,” he explains, “so, for example, I can make a Sangiovese, something unheard of here, while my unoaked Tannat is called Barrell-Less.” Primarily making sulphite-free wines, using natural yeasts, it is still a surprise to taste his Black Sparkling, a Methode Champenoise made with Tannat grapes, probably the only one of its type in the world.