Baltazar

Montevideo wine bar

The selection, under the care of sommelier Anna Larocca (we love her Instagram handle @_rarauva_—‘strange grape’) features garage wineries, lesser known wines from classic vineyards like Pisano and minimal intervention wines by the likes of Pablo Fallabrino.

Every Monday Anna creates a new ‘by the glass’ menu of ten labels for your tasting pleasure. She also organises Baltazar events (see Instagram for updates).

Baltazar is run by spice guru Daniel Alonzo and dessert aficionada Rosina Seguí. As an international chef and world traveller, Daniel was the first person to import lesser-known spices—especially hot ones—to Uruguay. Us foreigners should burn candles to Daniel on a regular basis. The spice store is adjacent to the bar.

The charcuterie boards are outstanding. All produce is the very best quality and produced locally, with the exception of the Iberian ham imported from Spain. Cheeses include Brie, Gorgonzola, Camembert, Colonia (the Uruguay classic), and a ten-month cured Parmesan. Thanks to Daniel it’s no surprise to find the hummus liberally sprinkled with fragrant za’atar. You’ll love the quality and the generosity of the portions and pours.

What you should know

Open all year around all day long. The bar is open from 11am until midnight and until 2 am on weekends. Quietest time to go is before 7 pm.

Not solely wine and charcuterie. Beautiful cocktails and a local cider are also on offer. Plus tapas and specials (for example, recently a mouth-watering sandwich of oven-roasted porchetta). Wines pair particularly well with the Baltazar desserts, which themselves benefit from being part of a wine-spice universe. Alternatively, you’re in a food market. Go choose from another stand, bring your meal back and let the Baltazar team pair it with a great wine.

For expert advice in English and French Anna Larocca is at the bar every Monday from 3-6pm. However all staff have great local wine knowledge and speak Spanish and Portuguese. If your bartender doesn’t speak too much English, says Daniel, explain what you don’t like. That will make it easy to recommend a wine you’re really going to love.