Interviews
Information about wine production at Finca Narbona was always vague, it was said that you made wine, others expressed the contrary, the vineyards were and are still there... What is really the truth?
So far, the wine bottled under Narbona label had been produced at Bodegas Irurtia. This year for the first time we made our own wine, the oenologist Valeria Chiola is in charge of winemaking. We finished assembling our own winery last December.
What can you tell us about the vineyards? Finca Narbona is very old but the current vineyards were planted by you ...
The vineyards have eight years. The vines were imported from France: it is almost all Tannat but there are a few acres of Pinot Noir.
What is the total acreage of vines now?
The estate has 124 acres, but we have 25 planted with vines. We also have fruit, rooms for accommodation, a restaurant and soon we will be beginning to develop our cheese production here, because currently we have it 6 miles away. The purpose of the project is to produce both cheeses and winesat Finca Narbona.
Narbona is better known in Uruguay for its cheese rather than for its wine...
This is because cheese is what we advertise, we targeted our business to do so because the wines we made in Irurtia for some years, since we did not not have our own wine we decided not to promote it, we sold it only at our restaurants here in the winery, in a large restaurant in Punta del Este, and in one we opened in Tigre, near the coty of Buenos Aires. We started developing our business slowly towards this goal, but after Valeria took over the winemaking, now we are putting all their energy in publicizing our wines.
She is a well known winemaker among peers ...
We are very happy, she is a young professional who has just started her career in Uruguay, but she spent some time studying in Italy and also in Los Angeles, we are very confident in her skills.
Did you set the same business going in the Punta del Este after it was consolidated in Puerto Carmelo?
We launched a trial business in Maldonado bar it was rather a real estate business, we planted twelve acres of vineyards, and we made a division of lands to be sold in combination with the wine, it is now already developed and houses are for sale. The project is called Viņas del Este, it is now in its fourth year and it has sold very well in Punta del Este. It is also associated with the Narbona project of Narbonne in the Restaurant and Winery aspects.
The advertising says "wine is offered with personalized label and design." What does that mean?
In Viņas del Este we manage for the real estate owner the fraction of vineyards we sell, we develop the process of its wine, its label, everything. Though it is not intended to be sold in the market but mostly for personal consumption, private, so you can indulge yourself inviting your guests for dinner and offering your own wine. It is an accessory to real estate to increase value, in Europe it is being carried out since many years ago, Mendoza also started doing it four or five years ago, and we did very well in Punta del Este. It's something small, very neat, which allows the owners to produce and enjoy their own wines.
Apart from Tannat and Pinot Noir are you producing wines with the Viognier and Gewürztraminer varieties?
Yes, exactly, but very little quantity. Our guests like them. We do not have a large production, it is indeed very small, but we have it.
Do you also make cognac?
Our cognac is imported from France, we acquired it long time ago, now I think it must have 18 or 20 years, and we're selling it in small amounts, very slowly.
Are Narbona products sold only at the winery, or can they also be found in liquor stores and specialized shops?
Currently we sell them only in our restaurants in Carmelo, Punta del Este and Buenos Aires. We will be slowly gaining other game fields by giving it a bit more promotion. The idea is to open ourselves a little bit now: take part in the domestic market, look for markets abroad, in next October or November of this year the idea is to send our wines to international competitions and participate in fairs, to split the game in the field.
Do you know that there is an association of exporting wineries called Wines of Uruguay?
Yes, we are aware and we will slowly start taking part in all these activities. Bear in mind that it is the first year that we make our wine, we are compulsorily heading towards it. Soon, volume is going to force us to walk all the roads to start marketing them in the best possible way.
What is the opinion of Marcelo Irurtia about the growth of Narbona?
Marcelo encouraged us to face the challenge of the projects we have taken over, personally he is a great friend, but, above all, he is a good person. He helped us a lot in all our developments, he is one of the persons who stood by us from the beginning and we believe he is likely to continue working with us as counsellor in the future.
Your nickname 'Pacha' arose from the world of soccer. In Uruguay, which team are you a fan of?
I'm a fan of Boca in Buenos Aires and in Uruguay, I'm a fan of Peņarol. It could not be otherwise.
on wineries in Uruguay.
