Tuesday March 26 was a gorgeous day in Mendoza--- blue sky and a high of 26C (no humidity). It felt like a Napa Valley kinda day. We got up early to go on an all day tour of four wineries, including lunch, which our B&B had booked for us with a company called Trout & Wine. We were picked up in a mini-van at 8:45 a.m. Another couple from Denver who were staying at our B&B also joined the tour and we picked up four other people on the way out of town. Our tour guide, Vicky, was terrific. She had originally studied to be an English teacher at the excellent, free public university, but after working at a vineyard, got into the wine tourism field. She's been at it for eight years now and her English and wine knowledge was excellent.
Vicky also told us that Mendoza is located in an earthquake zone. The last major earthquake was in 1861, 300 years after the founding of the City. The City was destroyed and in the process created five large squares in the downtown area that could be used as excavation areas. There are also no high rises here and the tiled sidewalks are swept or washed down every day.
Vicky explained that while wine making in the Mendoza area dates back to the Spanish conquest in the 1500s, in the old days the emphasis was on quantity over quality. Wine makers around the turn of the century and right up until the 1970s or 1980s used huge concrete tanks to ferment the wine. There was very little care taken in wine-making and the wine was shipped to BA by train, in containers, The wine was often diluted with water along the way. The move from quantity to quality started in the 1980s and has really taken off since 2000. The wines that we sampled were very good and in some cases excellent. There was only one wine the entire tour that we really did not care for.
The tour was interesting in that we went to a mix of large and small wineries, also new and old. Two of the wineries had been abandoned in the 1970s and then bought and refurbished in the last 7-10 years.
Our first stop was the Alta Vista winery in Lujan de Cuyo about 15 km south of Mendoza. At the entrance were some beautiful 100 year old olive trees. The olive oil business is also doing well in Mendoza and some wineries do olive oil tastings. The Alta Vista winery has been French owned since 1997 and is a restoration of an old colonial styled building. The original winery dates back to 1890. The owner also owns Taittinger champagne. We tasted six wines-one white, 4 reds and a rose.
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| Olive trees at entrance to Alta Vista winery |
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| Refurbished old building |
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Vineyards and the Andes-- just breathtaking
Older concrete tanks
Door to a huge old tank-- now converted to tasting area
New Tanks
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Wine Cellar
They have a tasting bar located in one of the old concrete tanks. We did our tasting in an absolutely gorgeous tasting room.
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Gorgeous tasting room with sinks for rinsing glasses
One of our favourites was a 2007 Single Vineyard Malbec called Temis. Alta Vista brands itself as Terroir Expression Winemakers. Just a terrific experience.
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A very good wine.
Check out their website if you want more info: http://www.altavistawines.com/bodega.php?lang=en |
We then headed to Vina Cobos, a new, modern winery started in 2006. The building was gorgeous and reminded us a bit of Stratus in Niagara on the Lake.
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| Our winery guide coming to meet us at Vina Cobos |
We were lucky to be able to see the grapes being crushed. Harvest starts in the Mendoza are in March and goes to May, depending on the grape and the location. We also tasted some Malbec grapes, which were very sweet.
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| Malbec grapes being crushed |
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| Our wine guide with some Malbec grapes |
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| Opening the wines |
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| Tasting at Vina Cobos |
Our favourite wine was a 2010 Malbec called Bramare (Italian for to yearn for). The winery is a US- Argentinian venture and the winemakers have Italian and French backgrounds. See: http://www.vinacobos.com/web/web/home.php?id=home
We then went to visit Finca Decero (meaning "from scratch"). This a new winery in absolutely immaculate condition with an incredible view of the Andes. Even the vineyards are beautifully designed. It is Swiss owned and opened in around 2006.
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| Very modern beautiful building |
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| Incredible view of the Andes |
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| The vineyards |
We had a wonderful lunch at Finca Decero-- appetizer, gazpacho soup, choice of beef or trout, and a desert of berries and ice-cream (for me meringue).
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| Trout on quinoa |
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| Beef |
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At the table with all the wine
We tasted a 2010 Syrah, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvingon and then with the main course had a gorgeous 100% Petit Verdot. All the wines were very drinkable. We especially enjoyed the Petit Verdot.
Finca Decero only makes red wines at the present time. The owner also own Cuvaison in the Napa area (one of our favourite wineries) and a winery in Australia.
Vicky our tour guide with a Malbec leaf in front of our tour van (the Canadian flag was on the van,
because the driver had lived in Mississauga)
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| The old concrete tanks- some have been refurbished |
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Ricardo pouring the wine at our tasting
We tasted a 2010 Malbec, a 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon and a better 2010 Cab/Merlot blend. The winery has an old building that has been renovated. We sat outside on the patio in front of a water tower and near a small pond with fish. A lovely spot for our last tasting.
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We got back to our B&B at around 5:45. It was a superb day. Anyone who is seriously into wines, must go to Mendoza. The climate is perfect for grapes; the know-how is increasing; and the wines are superb. Hopefully, some of the better wines will start being exported to Canada.
After a rest, we went for a light dinner at Florentino. Alano and I shared an octopus salad, with chorizo, and a roasted chicken main course.
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| bread/appetizer |
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| octopus salad with chorizo |
What a fabulous day!
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