Wining in Mendoza

Argentina is home to one of the most famous wine regions in the world: Mendoza. We heard through the grapevine (HA!) that this was a must-do while in Argentina. As dedicated wine lovers, Meadows and I decided we had to check it out! We enjoyed an awesome dinner Friday night in Mendoza, attempting to prepare for our big wine tour the next day.

First off, let me set the scene. Mendoza houses over 1,500 vineyards across its three major wine regions; subsequently, the wines and vineyards differ by region. Our tour covered four vineyards: the first two in Luján de Cuyo, the last two in Maipu. Luján de Cuyo is the historic wine territory, and it’s famous for its Malbec. Similarly, Maipu has history and Malbec. We did not visit the Uco Valley at all; it is much newer and more modern. The higher altitudes there (some of the highest in the world for vineyards) give the wine a totally unique flavor. We booked our tour with Trout & Wine, and they were awesome!

We started the morning at 9am with our awesome guide, an older gentleman from Houston and three Baylor undergraduates studying in Mendoza for the summer. Being with the college kids made Meadows and me feel young again, but maybe a bit overconfident when starting a four-vineyard tour…

Our first stop of the day was Kaiken, an old style winery completely renovated and refurbished by a Chilean wine company. The name “Kaiken” is based on the Caiquenes (wild geese) that fly over Patagonia between Argentina and Chile. Like these birds, the vineyard uses grapes from both Chile and Arentina!

The views were breathtaking; we stood next to the vines and soaked up the view of the Andes.

Our guide showed us how they guide the water coming from the mountains to the grapes. She also explained how they route an arm of a vine to grow back into the ground to create new vines. Here, she is showing us what the roots of the vines look like.

We saw the fermentation process and the underground cellar, which was so stunning.

Lastly, we dove in and tasted the wines: two Malbecs, one Cabernet Sauvignon and one Sauvignon Blanc. Naturally, we had to capture some photos with the geese in them!

When you go to Argentina, everyone tells you to try the Malbec. So, we have had lots of it during our time here. We really enjoyed getting to try different types during our tastings. This was especially true at our next stop…

Bodega Vistalba was a short drive from Kaiken, so we still had an amazing view of the Andes. This was my favorite stop of the day. The vineyard felt like a chateau; everything was so nice!

We toured the different grapes, which are grown both where we were in Luján de Cuyo and offsite in the Uco Valley.

We also visited the underground cellar, which was beautifully decorated with warm light emanating from organic light fixtures.

Last but not least, we had our tasting underground …next to the owner’s private cellar. We tasted a sparkling, a white wine and two reds. I was pleasantly surprised that the tasting included a sparkling, and… IT WAS AWESOME. We also got to taste the local olive oil… also INCREDIBLE! We bought a bottle of each to take back to Buenos Aires.

The sun was shining and I was on a high from my sparkling wine discovery, so we got one of the college kids to take our photo.

At this point, we crossed the vineyards to the region of Maipu. We arrived at Finca Agostino, where we had a five-course lunch with wine pairings. The table and the view were truly stunning. AND THE FOOD! I cannot even begin to explain how incredible it was. Each course was better than the previous, and I was totally focused on the food – to the point where I only got a really blurry photo of one course and then forgot to even take one of the next course entirely!

 

1. Pea soup with black bean puree and crispy potato cubes
2. Chicken sausage wrap with raisins and beet sauce
3. Wheat risotto with osobucco braised for six hours
4. Filet mignon with Malbec sauce, potatoes and grilled vegetables
5. Dark chocolate parfait with warm dulce de leche sauce, coconut ice cream and raspberry ice cream

One of the red wines was a fantastic Syrah, which I didn’t expect to like. Similarly, the sparkling was not nearly as good as the previous vineyard’s version.

After our beautiful lunch, we walked the grounds outside …with champagne in hand!

Our last vineyard of the day was Don Manuel Villafañe, a modern winery with lots of history. The Villafañe family has been making wine for 400 years in Mendoza.

We walked the vineyards, but the most interesting part was back inside. Our guide encouraged us to try their Chardonnay at different points in the aging process. We could not believe how different the wine tasted from start to finish. The earlier side was pretty gross!

Unlike the other vineyards, we could see the modern aspects of wine production here. From a label machine to boxes and boxes of wine ready for shipment, we witnessed the enterprise side more than the romantic, historical side.

For our last tasting, we tried a Malbec, a Fourth Century Blend and a Cabernet Franc. Meadows and I had different preferences, so we settled on buying a bottle of the Malbec!

Despite drinking lots of wine, we learned a lot about Mendoza and winemaking. For example, the area only gets seven inches of rain per year, so they rely heavily on canals and irrigation systems to water the grapes. The systems vary from vineyard to vineyard. Similarly, the type of oak you age the wine in varies: American oak adds a honey, coconut and even pineapple flavor, whereas French oak instills a chocolate or vanilla flavor to the wine. French oak is more expensive. Lastly, we learned the importance of keeping rose bushes near the vines. If disease were to strike, the delicate rose bush would show signs of it before the grapes were infected.

Completely exhausted, we made our way back to the hotel and did not order wine with dinner. To say our weekend in Mendoza was a success would be an understatement.