Dec. 28-31
I successfully traveled to Mendoza from Bariloche on a bus. The bus trip was rather luxurious and surprisingly comfortable. The bus was a double- decker and my seat was able to fully recline. There were movies displayed on flat screen displays, in addition there was a game of bingo where the winner received a bottle of wine (not me). The trip started at 3pm and the movies and games ended around 10pm. I slept the remainder of the trip. I arrived to Mendoza at 8:30am the following morning.
The weather in Mendoza has been very hot, averaging 85 degrees in the shade. Mendoza is in the dessert but you would not know it with the abundant irrigation ditches known as acequias that run beside every main road. There are fountains in every main plaza so I am never far from the burble of running water.
Plaza Independencia, originally uploaded by dollop.
Tuesday I walked around Mendoza and booked a wine tour for the following day. In the evening I visited The Vines of Mendoza and participated in a personal wine tasting that introduced me to Legendary Malbecs and provided preparation for my day of wine tasting for the following day.
Wednesday morning I was picked up from my hotel at 8:30am and joined five others on an excellent tour of some wineries in Mendoza.
First we took a tour of Alta Vista, an old style winery completely renovated and refurbished by a French wine family. We sampled Torrontes, Bonarda, Malbec and had a special tasting of their Grand Reserve, one of Argentina’s best Malbecs.
Barrels used for aging, originally uploaded by dollop.
Next we had a tank and barrel tasting at the large, ultra-modern Bodega Tapiz. We started the tour with a horse drawn ride through the vineyard and an instructive tour of the winery followed.
Carriage ride through the vineyards, originally uploaded by dollop.
Metal tanks used for large volumes of production, originally uploaded by dollop.
Lunch was at the Ruca Malen. We enjoyed a five-course gourmet meal, created by chef Lucas Bustos who paired each dish with five different wines, including Ruca Malen’s top varietal Kinien.
View from Ruca Malen, originally uploaded by dollop.
We finished the tour at the boutique winery CarinaE. We met the owners of the winery, Brigitte and Philippe Subra and I ended up purchasing a bottle of a special reserve Malbec directly from Philippe to bring home.
I returned to my hotel at 6:00pm with a much better appreciation for wine. It was an excellent way to spend the last day of the year.