Mendoza Día 2

Su 11.25.12

• 9am pick up time at our hotel by Gustavo
• [We found Gustavo on TripAdvisor.  He is an affordable, knowledgeable tour guide who was very helpful in planning our trip, letting us choose which vineyards to visit, and giving suggestions on others as well as suggesting a reasonable timetable.  He arranged all of the reservations and pick-up and drop-off at the airport. We enjoyed our two days with him.]
• first stop: ALTA VISTA in Luján de Cuyo

olive tree

• Alta Vista is a beautiful, old refurbished winery owned by the D'Aulans French Champagne family

roof made of reeds

tasting room...for special tasters only

• we started with a guided tour before moving on to the tasting

Malbec in the making

• moving those grapes along...

• grapes are sorted by hand, looking for differences in coloring between the grapes
• this is usually done by women, because they tend to have smaller hands, be more detailed, and are less likely to be colorblind

• different tanks were used depending on the kinds of wine being made

• lab where all the testing goes on

• cellar where the wine is kept in French or American oak barrels

• bottled wine aging

• see that hole in the top? a hose is put through the hole, down into the barrel where wine is pumped through the hose to fill the barrel

our tasting room...inside an old fermenting tank

• inside the tasting room, our guide explains to us the differences in soil and climate by region (terroir, or microclimate)

• today's tasting: Alta Vista Premium Torrontes 2012, Bonarda 2011, and Malbec 2008

• Jake perfecting his swirling skills

great view

Jake and Gustavo walking between olive trees back to the truck

• Bodega 2 of the day: Achaval Ferrer, also in Luján de Cuyo

• best mountain view yet...the beautiful brick building overlooks a large green lawn, lush vineyards, and majestic mountain range

• before the tour we sat down with our guide where he explained a bit about Achaval Ferrer...
• in 1998, partners Santiago Achaval and Manuel Ferrer convinced Tuscan wine consultant Roberto Cipresso that this area of Mendoza was the new hot spot for winemaking 

• this winery was quite a bit smaller than Alta Vista, where they specialize in high-priced single-vineyard wines

• we then went down to the cellar where we found numerous barrels stored in high-humidity rooms, and bottles waiting to be exported

the ST identities the type of roast that the oak has

• our guide showed us bottles that had not yet been foiled
• these bottles are aging and will be foiled before being packaged up and shipped

labeling machine

• the reason for doing this is in case a cork goes bad...so if they see the wine seeping into the cork, it is reserved for internal consumption...one perk of working at a winery!
• so if you're going to age your wine, peal off the foil when purchasing it, store it horizontally in a cool, dry place, and check it every once in a while...if you see a red-stained cork, you better open it up and drink it before it turns bad

• Achaval Ferrer has a large export market...the pallets below are ready to be shipped over to a distributor in California

• our tasting room...I can't even remember what we tasted...but they were tasty, a little strong, and a little over our budget

roses are often planted at the beginning of each row to keep fire ants away from the vines

• Bodega 3: La Azul, in Uco Valley

• we ended up having lunch at this tiny bodega's outdoor restaurant
• we enjoyed a set menu while soaking in the sun and breathtaking view

garden on the side of the restaurant...ingredients are pulled from this garden to add to their dishes

• we of course ordered a bottle of wine to go with lunch...a bottle of their Cabernet Sauvignon cost 40 pesos (~US$8)
• and I couldn't get over how good their little rolls tasted...they were made in the clay oven out back (see below)

• this was a picada platter containing meat, cheese, and olives 

• some sort of egg and bacon tart with a side of sun dried tomatoes...mmm...

• local empanada containing chunks of meat, rather than ground beef

• Jake's steak on the outside parilla

• I ordered cannelloni....was a little salty, but I still enjoyed it

• Jake's steak and potato

• we tried one of each dessert...the chef's specialty lemon bar recipe with fruit (delicious)...

• and a very typical Argentinian postre, flan with dulce de leche

still not a huge flan fan

• we then entered the little winery

• and got to sample their Malbec Gran Reserva straight out of the barrel

• we enjoyed this small, intimate experience in comparison to some of the larger wineries

• it was getting a bit late by this point in the afternoon, but I was determined to follow our itinerary and make it to our final bodega, even though we missed the last tour time
• 4th and final Bodega: Salentein in Tupungato

• Salentein has a great sculpture garden leading up to the large, modern building, along with this fountain:

• behind this wall of art is the Killa art gallery, which we unfortunately didn't have time for...next time ;)

• behind this building, which houses a tasting room, restaurant, and gift shop, is the actual winery ...if you look closely, you can see the last tour heading out with their white umbrellas to block the sun

• since we missed the tour, we opted for a small tasting at the bar

• we sampled: Chardonnay 2010, Killa Malbec 2011, Salentein Reserve Malbec 2011, and Numina Gran Corte 2010

• we liked the Chardonnay and Reserve Malbec best, but by this point...we had had enough wine for the afternoon

• and we were ready to head back to the hotel for a wine-induced nap before our 9pm dinner reservation
• we had heard lots of good things about the restaurant Azafran, so we were excited to give it a shot

• Mendoza really knows how to put together a great bread basket...I kept telling Jake that I'd come back here just for a glass of wine and this bread:

• complimentary appetizer...not sure what it was, but we ate it

• Jake's trucha (trout...a common dish here) with mussels and squid

• my spinach and shrimp salad topped with crispy cheese

• (we secretly shared another glass of wine with dinner...as if we hadn't had enough at the FOUR wineries...we had to, we were in Mendoza!)
• shared some helado to top off another fabulous day in our new favorite city